Wilko Strawberry wine

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CBucks

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Hi folks,

I'm on my 2nd attempt at making a Wilko strawberry kit and experiencing difficulties on the final hurdles. The fermentation was very vigorous and I waited later than the recommended date to add flavourings and then stabiliser and finings the following day. My problem is that the wine just wont clear and I'm beginning to doubt it will. I continues to produce very fine air bubbles - not enough to go through the airlock but enough to form a small clear ring of bubbles around the edge of the demijohn. After it being like this for 2 weeks I followed manufacturers guidelines and added 3 crushed campden tablets. Results a week on - nothing! Should it clear so that I can see through it and will it ever settle? Should I / can I just shove it in a cornet and wait or should I bottle it? Any guidance very much appreciated ta.
 
I have made the wilko strawberry kit but don't remember it saying add campden tablets.

When fermentation has finished you add a sachet of flavouring and swirl the DJ.

24 hours later you add finings and stabiliser and wait another week before bottling.
Click to expand...

Have they stopped putting a stabiliser sachet in the kit?

Clearing normally takes a couple of days , does it smell and look OK ?
 
I have this kit in my stock. Had to go check the instruction booklet :-D

It does say leave the wine up to 10 days to clear. If it's still not clear in 14 days, "Leave the wine for a further 7 days. If it has still not cleared, then add 3 crushed Campden tablets, shake well and leave to clear."

Might have been a bit quick with the Campden there... I read that as 21 days after stabilising.

Did you dissolve the stabiliser before adding as per instuctions? What about temps? Was it 20+ for fermentation? What about once stabilised?

I normally move the wine to my garage floor (~15) for stabilising/clearing.
 
Thanks for this. Stabliser was dissolved in water and all additions to brew were well after recommended dates (including campden tablets). This is because fermentation was initially slow as temp was around 18 degrees for the 1st week - then things warmed up to around 20 degrees an it then went crazy and only stopped after2 weeks. Its possible there was a very very slight ferment when I added stabiliser but I thought this was okay to kill off the remaining yeast. I've smelt it and the aroma is very nice - fruity and alcoholic (: As with every swirl it makes loads of tiny bubbles I'm worried that bottling is a no no. Don't want my cupboards painted in 'a hint of vino'. Any more thoughts folks?
 
Maybe try a small amount of pectic enzyme and see if that helps. I seem to recall that's how I resolved the issue in the same kit
 
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I've swirled the demijohn a fair bit and tried to stir it (unsuccessfully I must say due to neck of the demi). Not sure what else to do to degas it? I could try pectic acid (I think Wilko call theirs Pectolase) but given that there was no pulp (all liquids) will this have any effect on clarity? I'm beginning to think the bubbles produced are that small they are having difficulty on breaking the surface tension. Is this common?
 
Swirling won't do It you need to cover the neck with your hand shake it and release your hand, keep doing this until it stops hissing when you release your hand.
 
Cheers. Will try this and then the enzyme. Damned if I'm giving up on it now. Will report back.....
 
Hi Guys,

Got some Pectolase from Wilko but the guidance only refers to the beginning of fermentation. How much should I add to my 4.5 ltr demijohn and should it be diluted?
 
Got the Pectolase from Wilko but the guidance only refers to addition at the beginning of fermentation. How much should I add to my 4.5 litre demijohn and should it be diluted? If it works - how long should it be before it starts taking effect?
 
You put pectolace in at the beginning to stop your wine getting a pectin haze, i may be wrong but don't think its a pectin haze, you haven't got enough CO2 out of it and the sediment is trapped in the tiny bubbles making the wine look hazy, give it a good degassing using the method i posted earlier in the thread (see below) then leave it a couple of days and see how it goes.

Swirling won't do It you need to cover the neck with your hand shake it and release your hand, keep doing this until it stops hissing when you release your hand.
Click to expand...
 
If I'm de-gassing a demi-john, I use the handle from a long plastic home brew mixing spoon (head sawn off!) in an electric drill. Slight bend added to the bottom by heating it in boiling water. Spend about 15 mins. Does a great job in a demi :thumb:
 
I just threw a teaspoon of pectolase in, gave it a damn good shake and left it in the garage for a month. It was clear as a bell after this and the pectolase fell to the bottom of the dj with a load of black gummy bits
 
Decanted the brew to another demi and there was so much foam in just doing this that I'm now positive this is a CO2 issue. Tried shaking it as advised but gave up after 10 mins. Stirring wand now made. Drill on charge. Pectin on standby.
 
Take it easy when you first try your degassing wand you will be surprised how much foam it makes, i put my DJ's on a towel in case the wine comes out, it also stops them moving when you switch from forward to reverse.
 
Used the wand - but I suspect with limited success. The drill whipped the wand around so much I was scared of knocking over the DJ or smashing the glass. Consequently I pulsed it a second at a time for about 5 mins in total with the DJ between my feet. It made a lot of foam but each time I stopped drilling the bubbles kept being produced. I wasn't sure if this process needed to be continued until no foam was produced but I couldn't see that this was going to happen any time soon. A day on and there are still a few bubbles on the surface and no difference in clarity. I must admit I didn't think of putting the drill in reverse. Did I miss something here? Should I have drilled at full speed? Should I have carried on until the bubbles stopped or my drill gave out? (;
 

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