Red wine smells like sulpher after adding deacidifier.
 

My red wine had too much acid so I added this product;

Compound deacidifier based on calcium carbonate, potassium carbonate
and potassium tartrate. Because of its composition, deacidification
takes place in a more balanced way than when using a simple
deacidifier. This benefits the overall taste of the wine.

Dose : 10 g / 10 litre reduces the acidity by 1 g / litre

That was 2 months ago. One month ago I tranferred the wine off of
this deacidifier and at that time it smelled pretty nasty like
sulpher. Today I took a sample and it really tastes fine. But the
sulpher smell is still there allbeit it has lessened a bit.

This nasty smell was NOT there before I added this crap. The wine was
simply too acidic.

I've been doing some searches on this board for sulpher smelling wines
and some say to add copper! OR, rack with a copper pipe on the end.
It is Winter here and the wine is @50°f and is VERY clear and tastes
fine. It's just the SMELL!

Did I mess this up by adding the above mentioned product? If so, is
there anything I can do? Like I said the wine is clear, topped up,
and tastes pretty darn good actually.

FWIW this is not a kit. The grapes were Dornfelder.

Please advise!

Phil

"Phil" > wrote in message
om...
> My red wine had too much acid so I added this product;
>
> Compound deacidifier based on calcium carbonate, potassium carbonate
> and potassium tartrate. Because of its composition, deacidification
> takes place in a more balanced way than when using a simple
> deacidifier. This benefits the overall taste of the wine.
>
> Dose : 10 g / 10 litre reduces the acidity by 1 g / litre
>
> That was 2 months ago. One month ago I tranferred the wine off of
> this deacidifier and at that time it smelled pretty nasty like
> sulpher. Today I took a sample and it really tastes fine. But the
> sulpher smell is still there allbeit it has lessened a bit.
>
> This nasty smell was NOT there before I added this crap. The wine was
> simply too acidic.
>
> I've been doing some searches on this board for sulpher smelling wines
> and some say to add copper! OR, rack with a copper pipe on the end.
> It is Winter here and the wine is @50°f and is VERY clear and tastes
> fine. It's just the SMELL!
>
> Did I mess this up by adding the above mentioned product? If so, is
> there anything I can do? Like I said the wine is clear, topped up,
> and tastes pretty darn good actually.
>
> FWIW this is not a kit. The grapes were Dornfelder.
>
> Please advise!
>
> Phil

Phil,
Does your wine smell like a burned match or like rotten eggs?
--
Lum
Del Mar, California, USA

**Does your wine smell like a burned match or like rotten eggs?**

Hmm, now that you mention it, it is not like the sulpher smell from a
typical lager beer fermentaion, maybe it is a bit, "rotton egg".

Anyway, I'm sure is came from the deacidifier product I added. When I
added it, it foamed like a volcano!
So what is it about that particular deacidifier that causes this smell?

If it is hydrogen sulfide (rotten egg smell), adding the gas released during
deacidification would have carried some H2S with it. It's not that the
deacidifier causes the smell, just that it makes it much more noticeable.

"Flip" > wrote in message
oups.com...
> **Does your wine smell like a burned match or like rotten eggs?**
>
> Hmm, now that you mention it, it is not like the sulpher smell from a
> typical lager beer fermentaion, maybe it is a bit, "rotton egg".
>
> Anyway, I'm sure is came from the deacidifier product I added. When I
> added it, it foamed like a volcano!
> So what is it about that particular deacidifier that causes this smell?
>

Aaron Puhala wrote:
> If it is hydrogen sulfide (rotten egg smell), adding the gas released
during
> deacidification would have carried some H2S with it. It's not that
the
> deacidifier causes the smell, just that it makes it much more
noticeable.

Err, what is hydrogen sulfide? What is the cause and is there a cure?

Why does this not affect the taste?
If there is no cure I guess I either dump it, or wear nose plugs:-(

Hydrogen sulfide (H2S) is what smells like rotten eggs. H2S is usually
a result of low nitrogen nutrient in the juice or must being fermented. The
yeast generate H2S when they are stressed by low nutrients or temperatures
that are too high or too low. Best treatment I've encountered is Bocksin.
It
can be obtained from several of the online beer/wine making supply shops.

http://www.morebeer.com/product.html?product_id=15557

Buy enough for two treatments. just in case.


"Flip" > wrote in message
oups.com...
>
> Aaron Puhala wrote:
>> If it is hydrogen sulfide (rotten egg smell), adding the gas released
> during
>> deacidification would have carried some H2S with it. It's not that
> the
>> deacidifier causes the smell, just that it makes it much more
> noticeable.
>
> Err, what is hydrogen sulfide? What is the cause and is there a cure?
>
> Why does this not affect the taste?
> If there is no cure I guess I either dump it, or wear nose plugs:-(
>

**or temperatures
that are too high or too low.**

Too high OR too low. Well if anything, my temps were too low. I have
an outside basement and the grapes were picked at the end of October so
my ferment and ripening temps were always too low. It's been sitting
at 50=B0f or less most of the time. But it is totally fermented out.

More beer just happens to be my supplier for all of my beer stuff.
I'll have to check it out.

Bocksin sure is a wierd name.

Man this is my very first grape wine, my second overall, 1st was a
cherry wine and that went sooo smooth. I feel like I'm over doctoring
this wine big time.

OK we will see.

I was really hoping for the, "time cures all ills" answer. I have a
buttload of that on hand and I wouldn't have to doctor it anymore.
Next year I'm not gonna do a red again. I'll try a white. If that
does not turn out, I'll quit making grape wines. Can't wait for June
to do another cherry wine.

**or temperatures
that are too high or too low.**

Too high OR too low. Well if anything, my temps were too low. I have
an outside basement and the grapes were picked at the end of October so
my ferment and ripening temps were always too low. It's been sitting
at 50=B0f or less most of the time. But it is totally fermented out.

More beer just happens to be my supplier for all of my beer stuff.
I'll have to check it out.

Bocksin sure is a wierd name.

Man this is my very first grape wine, my second overall, 1st was a
cherry wine and that went sooo smooth. I feel like I'm over doctoring
this wine big time.

OK we will see.

I was really hoping for the, "time cures all ills" answer. I have a
buttload of that on hand and I wouldn't have to doctor it anymore.
Next year I'm not gonna do a red again. I'll try a white. If that
does not turn out, I'll quit making grape wines. Can't wait for June
to do another cherry wine.

"Flip" > wrote in message
oups.com...
I was really hoping for the, "time cures all ills" answer. I have a
buttload of that on hand and I wouldn't have to doctor it anymore.

H2S problems can arise in _any_ fermentation. A trick that may work for you
if you don't have a severe case is stirring the wine thoroughly with a
_clean_ piece of copper tubing. If this is going to work, it'll only take a
few minutes. The H2S reacts with the surface of the copper to form copper
sulfide, which will stick to the pipe. Hanging a clean sterling silver fork
in the wine will do the same thing, but not as quickly.

Tom S

Cool!

I'll try the copper pipe treatment.

I have a 4 liter and a 25 liter carboy full of this wine.

The 4 liter is for topping up the 25'er.

I think I'll try it on the 4 liter one first to see what happens.

That is similar advice that I got when I was doing searches on this
board. They were saying to 'rack' to another container through a
copper pipe.

Thanks again!

"Tom S" > wrote in message
m...
>
>
> H2S problems can arise in _any_ fermentation. A trick that may work for
> you if you don't have a severe case is stirring the wine thoroughly with a
> _clean_ piece of copper tubing.

By clean, do you mean any oxidation layer must be buffed off, so you are
left with shiny new metal?

Brian

Tom is correct on the copper pipe treatment. Copper Sulfate can also be
used. I personally prefer not to use copper treatments on my wine simply
because copper is toxic and I don't feel I can guarantee that the copper
level
in my wine is low enough after treatment.

CHEERS!

"Tom S" > wrote in message
m...
>
> "Flip" > wrote in message
> oups.com...
> I was really hoping for the, "time cures all ills" answer. I have a
> buttload of that on hand and I wouldn't have to doctor it anymore.
>
> H2S problems can arise in _any_ fermentation. A trick that may work for
> you if you don't have a severe case is stirring the wine thoroughly with a
> _clean_ piece of copper tubing. If this is going to work, it'll only take
> a few minutes. The H2S reacts with the surface of the copper to form
> copper sulfide, which will stick to the pipe. Hanging a clean sterling
> silver fork in the wine will do the same thing, but not as quickly.
>
> Tom S
>

"Brian Lundeen" > wrote in message
...
>
> "Tom S" > wrote in message
> m...
>>
>>
>> H2S problems can arise in _any_ fermentation. A trick that may work for
>> you if you don't have a severe case is stirring the wine thoroughly with
>> a _clean_ piece of copper tubing.
>
> By clean, do you mean any oxidation layer must be buffed off, so you are
> left with shiny new metal?

Yes, that's what I meant. I suspect that a dirty copper pipe would
_probably_ do the trick too, but do you really want to put something dirty
into your wine? :^)

Tom S

"Aaron Puhala" > wrote in message
...
> Tom is correct on the copper pipe treatment. Copper Sulfate can also be
> used. I personally prefer not to use copper treatments on my wine simply
> because copper is toxic and I don't feel I can guarantee that the copper
> level
> in my wine is low enough after treatment.

The reaction is pretty much self-limiting, and the contact time really isn't
long enough to dissolve much copper into the wine, as copper is nearly
inert. Besides, copper is not _that_ poisonous - especially in such low
concentrations. Might even be a required trace element in humans' diet.

If you're really worried about it, use the sterling silver trick instead.
That's extremely safe.

Tom S

OK Tom,

I stirred both of my carboys. The 25 liter and the 4 liter. I'll
let'em go a while and seed if it did the trick.

"Flip" > wrote in message
oups.com...
> OK Tom,
>
> I stirred both of my carboys. The 25 liter and the 4 liter. I'll
> let'em go a while and see if it did the trick.

If it workd, it worked immediately. No need to wait. If it didn't work,
you didn't stir for long enough to get all the H2S or you have a mercaptan
problem. Mercaptan is harder to treat.

Tom S