"Pete" > wrote in message
...
> So here is the plan...
>
> Rack off the oak and lees to clean corny's
>
> Add bentonite (should I reduce the quantity since the wine is clear
> now?)

About 2 lbs bentonite/1000 gallons is a light fining. That should be
sufficient. I recommend that you also add about 1 lb Kieselsohl/1000 gal.

Be sure to properly hydrate the bentonite before adding it to the wine. A
blender and hot water works well for that. 50 grams/liter is about the
right proportion. After blenderizing, let it stand for at least a day to
assure that it is completely hydrated. Then shake it up and add it slowly
to the wine with continuous stirring.

> Add SO2 per the wine PH
>
> Place back in the cold garage for the duration of winter.
>
> When it starts to warm up, place airlocks on my corny's

If the wine is dry, degassed and finished with ML there's no reason not to
top it up and bung it tight. IOW, no airlock.

> Bottle in April (do I SO2 again before bottling? Or do I add it
> direct to the bottling bucket?)

The free SO2 should still be the same as it was last time you checked it,
but there's no reason not to check it again.

I'm not sure what you mean by "bottling bucket", but it sounds like it
involves unnecessary exposure to air. If you have a steady hand, you should
be able to bottle right off the fining lees. Just be careful not to disturb
the lees with the siphon. A racking cane with one of those little plastic
flow redirectors on the end is useful for this operation.

If your technique isn't so good, you should probably rack off the finings
into a carboy for bottling from that.

Tom S