I'm making a Cabernet from a Selection brand kit.
For the secondary fermentation in the carboy I'm supposed
to wait 10 days and then check the specific gravity over
a two day period to make sure it has stabilized.
After four days, however, the bubbling has stopped.
So...
Should I wait the entire ten days even though the
fermentation process has apparently stopped.
Is the SG still going to continue to change?
Can I remove the stopper and check the SG, or will
the introduction of air harm anything?
I'm new at this and any experienced insights are
greatly appreciated
Thank you.

--
Bob Becker

www.becker.org

Bob Becker wrote:
> I'm making a Cabernet from a Selection brand kit.
> For the secondary fermentation in the carboy I'm supposed
> to wait 10 days and then check the specific gravity over
> a two day period to make sure it has stabilized.
> After four days, however, the bubbling has stopped.
> So...
> Should I wait the entire ten days even though the
> fermentation process has apparently stopped.
> Is the SG still going to continue to change?
> Can I remove the stopper and check the SG, or will
> the introduction of air harm anything?
> I'm new at this and any experienced insights are
> greatly appreciated
> Thank you.
>
> --
> Bob Becker
>
> www.becker.org

It can still be going slowly even if you don't see any bubbles. Just
follow the recipe if you're a newbie, that's the best starting point.

Pp

Hi,

I also do Selection kits. Personnaly, I prefer to let my wine age as
long as possible. So I would tend to let my wine ferment as much as
possible before proceeding to the next stage, so I would wait at least
10 days. When I watch my carboy with a flashlight, I still see small
bubbles comming up.

If your goal is to bottle and drink as soon as possible, I would say
check the gravity, if it is around 0.995 and it doesn't bubble anymore,
you can proceed to the next stage. Don't worry too much with the air
contamination, you don't have the choice when racking. The rule is to
not overexpose to air for no reason.

Sometimes, depending on the temperature and other factors, the wine
ferment more quickly. It is possible that the process has already
finished. We don't know how long you kepted it in the primary
fermentation!


Bob Becker wrote:
> I'm making a Cabernet from a Selection brand kit.
> For the secondary fermentation in the carboy I'm supposed
> to wait 10 days and then check the specific gravity over
> a two day period to make sure it has stabilized.
> After four days, however, the bubbling has stopped.
> So...
> Should I wait the entire ten days even though the
> fermentation process has apparently stopped.
> Is the SG still going to continue to change?
> Can I remove the stopper and check the SG, or will
> the introduction of air harm anything?
> I'm new at this and any experienced insights are
> greatly appreciated
> Thank you.
>
> --
> Bob Becker
>
> www.becker.org

Bob:

Selection kits are a good quality 6-week. Do not be impatient. Talk
your time. Procrastinate. Sit down with a glass of wine and breathe
easily. Go for a nice walk.

Get the idea???

More seriously...since you already have it in carboy, under airlock,
wait the time. Then check the sg. If it's nice and low (under .995
or whatever the instructions say) continue on. Don't be in a rush.

Oh and I positively refuse to believe visual signs. It hasn't stopped
fermewnting until the sg stops dropping. bubbles/foam/phase of
moon/etc etc mean nothing

Steve

On Wed, 14 Jun 2006 11:52:01 -0400, "Bob Becker" >
wrote:

>I'm making a Cabernet from a Selection brand kit.
>For the secondary fermentation in the carboy I'm supposed
>to wait 10 days and then check the specific gravity over
>a two day period to make sure it has stabilized.
>After four days, however, the bubbling has stopped.
>So...
>Should I wait the entire ten days even though the
>fermentation process has apparently stopped.
>Is the SG still going to continue to change?
>Can I remove the stopper and check the SG, or will
>the introduction of air harm anything?
>I'm new at this and any experienced insights are
>greatly appreciated
>Thank you.

Thank you all for your responses.
I'll bow to the collective wisdom and be patient and wait the full ten days
before I take the next steps.

It's kind of interesting to start with a recipe and then have it evolve into
an art form so quickly.

Thanks again!


BB

I second your final comment - visual signs mean nothing. I've had kits
in carboys with NOTHING happening, yet the SG continued to drop over
time. No bubbles, though I watched for over 10 minutes (while enjoying a
glass of wine, of course).
I'm learning patience, and procrastination though I am a type A normally
in life. :*) since starting wine making, I can even stand in line at a
grocery store and not dart around like a mongoose to find the shortest
line. :*)
signed, a controlled Type A now,

DAve

Steve wrote:
> Bob:
>
> Selection kits are a good quality 6-week. Do not be impatient. Talk
> your time. Procrastinate. Sit down with a glass of wine and breathe
> easily. Go for a nice walk.
>
> Get the idea???
>
> More seriously...since you already have it in carboy, under airlock,
> wait the time. Then check the sg. If it's nice and low (under .995
> or whatever the instructions say) continue on. Don't be in a rush.
>
> Oh and I positively refuse to believe visual signs. It hasn't stopped
> fermewnting until the sg stops dropping. bubbles/foam/phase of
> moon/etc etc mean nothing
>
> Steve
>
> On Wed, 14 Jun 2006 11:52:01 -0400, "Bob Becker" >
> wrote:
>
>> I'm making a Cabernet from a Selection brand kit.
>> For the secondary fermentation in the carboy I'm supposed
>> to wait 10 days and then check the specific gravity over
>> a two day period to make sure it has stabilized.
>> After four days, however, the bubbling has stopped.
>> So...
>> Should I wait the entire ten days even though the
>> fermentation process has apparently stopped.
>> Is the SG still going to continue to change?
>> Can I remove the stopper and check the SG, or will
>> the introduction of air harm anything?
>> I'm new at this and any experienced insights are
>> greatly appreciated
>> Thank you.
>