"Lee" > wrote in message
...
> This question concerns how often to rack. I'm referring to making
> grape wine from fresh red grapes, in carboys.
>
> My routine is to do the primary fermentation in an open tub. I'll
> often innoculate with ML just prior to the completion of the primary.
> Once the primary is completed, I'll press, let the wine settle, and
> then rack after a day or so. But once the ML is completed, which
> usually takes about a month, I'll be left with a filled carboy with
> about 1/2 to 1 inch of debri on the bottom. Do you all rack at that
> point? Or do you let the wine age on its lees? I usually cold
> stabilize in my garage over the winter (in Maryland, we can count on 3
> weeks or so of consistently cold weather). Then I usually rack at the
> end of winter.
>
> Does this sound about right? I'm wondering what the effect of letting
> the wine sit on 1 inch of dead yeast cells for 3-4 months does.
>
> Also, I'm not sure if the debri in the bottom of the carboy can
> accurately be called "lees". It's really not old grape skins or
> stems...it's just dead yeast.
>
> Any thoughts?
>
> Lee


Lee,

I made a "sur lie" batch of Concord wine several years ago, leaving the lees
in the carboy and stirring it up every few days for a while and less
frequently after the first month. I let it age in the cellar over the winter
and bottled in the spring. I didn't notice any major difference from the
regularly racked wines. Maybe Concord doesn't react the same way to lees as
"real" grapes.

Maryland seems to be a popular spot for wine makers; I'm up in Harford
County.

Paul