Great to hear the positive progress.
The cold will preserve it better but when you go to rack it let it warm up so it wont be so prone to absorb oxygen as cold liquids do.
You may want to do 2 rackings as the lees sound like they will be rather fluffy. So if you do dont worry about any fluff...
Cold stabilization can drop the Total Acidity by as much as 2g/L but this doesn't have a noticable influence on acidity on the tongue. It is also interesting, and counter intuitive, to note that this procedure actually drops the pH by as much as .2, instead of increasing it, which one would...
If you think those dollies will work for you keep in mind that those plans are for barrels much smaller than yours -- yours are 230 L Burgundian barrels (I think) that will weigh over 600 lbs when filled.
Who coopered them?-- the tonnelliere should be stamped on one of the heads -- just curious
i have worked in wineries that have used the sulfur method but feel the best way of ensuring they are protected is filling completely with a citric/sulfur solution (3 cups to half a cup). The problem with this is that the solution will continue to pull out wood character out of the barrels and...
Suggestion: Building a basic rack structure out of 2x4's so the barrel can be positioned at a height that is conducive for siphoning and it looks impressive too.
I work with barrels. If you go over the questions I posed before I can give you some advice. Obviously the interiors arent sheer...
I understand the heavy lifting point.
My concern with pumps would be sanitation issues, parts and hose that may not be designed for acidic food products, and if the mechanics would be detrimental to the product. I use pumps all the time to move large quantities of wine but the factors i just...
were they rinsed?
were they emptied recently as in within days?
were they stored in the interim properly, ie. citric and sulfur to thwart any biological activity?
Do they smell fine?
You are going to be putting a huge investment into them be careful.
Rack it then put the remainder in a smaller container and it should settle.
If you were going to bentonite do it to the entire batch so to pull out the proteins in suspension -- apricot has lots.
After tossing a few infected batches immediately I kept several 1 litre flip tops back for kicks. After 5 months I popped one, and it was surprisingly drinkable with this annoying flavour far in the background. Trying the next one it was not at all consumable. It is quite interesting to see...
whatever is in solution may develop into a problem so it would be best to have it fallout before bottling.
Chilling cant hurt and could initiate a precipate.
Has there been any developments?
clearing at the top -- that sort of thing
picture sounds great
We make pretty good bordeaux's here in BC which beat some of the best St Emilion's Premiere Cru, hands down. I lived in Bordeaux (the city) for 2 years. There is not a region known as Bordeaux.
The term Meritage was concocted in California which is the North American answer to what is known...
Bordeaux wine is a blend made up of 3 main grapes and 4 minor grapes.
Cabernet Sauvignon
Cabernet Franc
Merlot
Malbec
Petit Verdot
Gros Verdot
Rousanne (I think)
Many different yeasts are used and more importantly barrels play a big role in the bordeaux flavour profile (generally a combination...
does it smell okay. the milkiness is suspect.
But is probably a protein issue since it did get pressed/ground more aggressively than the clear one.
You could also try sticking it outside (obviously not below -3 C) for kicks to see if that does anything.
The milky aspect sounds like an infection -- any off smells?
Apple juice is loaded with proteins which will often fall out of solution with racking and time.
Failing that bentonite is the best application for fining.
With all of these apps bench trials should be preformed so you arent wasting...