Thanks for the tip. I'll make sure I check and provide a little air if
necessary. How did your in-vessel stirred wines turn out? Did you stir
continuously?

"Ben Rotter" > wrote in message
om...
> Michael Brill wrote:
> > I guess the question is really about how much oxygen is in the wine?
> > I was under the impression that there was very little oxygen in the
> > wine and therefore stirring up lees in a bunch of oxygen-free wine
> > wouldn't do much to oxygenate the lees. But it sounds like this may
> > be wrong... that indeed the wine does contain a meaningful amount of
> > oxygen that can be absorbed by the lees. Correct?
>
> How much oxygen the wine contains will depends on how much oxygen
> exposure it's had. Different methods of stirring will obviously
> introduce different amounts of O2, and the amount of lees (amongst
> other things) will determine how much of that O2 is absorbed. Without
> a DO meter you really can't get an accurate figure on any of this.
> However, I think it's enough to just use common sense and your sense
> of smell to detect what stage the wine is at (i.e. whether it's in a
> more reductive or oxidative state).
>
> Aaron Puhala wrote:
> > oxidation. I currently have a 6 gallon batch of Viognier aging sur lie
but
> > I am stirring it continuously using a magnetic stirrer so I never have
to
> > open the container. I want to see what happens with this degree of
stirring
> > when the risk of oxidation is removed.
>
> I have done in-vessel stirring (i.e. without any opening of the
> vessel) and have found that if you keep it up for long enough the wine
> will become reductive. If I were you, I'd keep close tabs on the wine
> (taste it relatively regularly) to check where it's at.
>
> Ben