Too Much Sulfite
 

Got a question, I made some peach and muscadine wine back in late December
early January I believe it was. I added a little bit more sulfite than I
usually do. I head that peach oxidizes easily so I though I would add a
little more sulfite for added protection. Now the wine have a funny flavor.
I had posed about this months ago and got some feed back that it could
potentially be that I have made stopper out of champagne corks because I
couldn't find stoppers the correct size. Shortly after that I was cleaning
a jug with a sulfite solutions and for what ever reason took a whiff out of
the jug and it hit me that that was the same smell as the wine had. So my
question is... I am pretty sure that I put too much sulfite in my wine,
will it ever dissipate? Or will it always have an off flavor? Is there
anything I can do to treat it. I opened a bottle just to taste it, about a
month ago. It still had that funny flavor that it did when I bottled it.

Any help would be appreciated.

David

David J. wrote:

> Got a question, I made some peach and muscadine wine back in late
> December
> early January I believe it was. I added a little bit more sulfite than I
> usually do. I head that peach oxidizes easily so I though I would add a
> little more sulfite for added protection. Now the wine have a funny
> flavor. I had posed about this months ago and got some feed back that it
> could potentially be that I have made stopper out of champagne corks
> because I
> couldn't find stoppers the correct size. Shortly after that I was
> cleaning a jug with a sulfite solutions and for what ever reason took a
> whiff out of
> the jug and it hit me that that was the same smell as the wine had. So my
> question is... I am pretty sure that I put too much sulfite in my wine,
> will it ever dissipate? Or will it always have an off flavor? Is there
> anything I can do to treat it. I opened a bottle just to taste it, about
> a
> month ago. It still had that funny flavor that it did when I bottled it.
>
> Any help would be appreciated.
>
> David

Before treating, I suggest you know for sure you have identified the
problem. You could send off a sample to Vinquiry and have them do some
analysis for you, or you could have someone who is knowledgeable in wine
taste and smells check it for you. It depends on how much wine you have
and how much you are willing to spend to have it checked out. I have
difficulty using the titrets used to check for SO2, others do not.

David J. wrote:

> Got a question, I made some peach and muscadine wine back in late
> December
> early January I believe it was. I added a little bit more sulfite than I
> usually do. I head that peach oxidizes easily so I though I would add a
> little more sulfite for added protection. Now the wine have a funny
> flavor. I had posed about this months ago and got some feed back that it
> could potentially be that I have made stopper out of champagne corks
> because I
> couldn't find stoppers the correct size. Shortly after that I was
> cleaning a jug with a sulfite solutions and for what ever reason took a
> whiff out of
> the jug and it hit me that that was the same smell as the wine had. So my
> question is... I am pretty sure that I put too much sulfite in my wine,
> will it ever dissipate? Or will it always have an off flavor? Is there
> anything I can do to treat it. I opened a bottle just to taste it, about
> a
> month ago. It still had that funny flavor that it did when I bottled it.
>
> Any help would be appreciated.
>
> David

Before treating, I suggest you know for sure you have identified the
problem. You could send off a sample to Vinquiry and have them do some
analysis for you, or you could have someone who is knowledgeable in wine
taste and smells check it for you. It depends on how much wine you have
and how much you are willing to spend to have it checked out. I have
difficulty using the titrets used to check for SO2, others do not.

It's hard to imagine adding so much sulfite that you can smell it, how
much did you add into what quantity of wine? It's hard to answer with
any precision without knowing that.

I use titrettes to measure sulfite, it costs around $1.25 to measure
using one. You can't use them if you are color blind and they can be
tricky at first. If you don't use them but have access to a winemaking
shop they will probably do it for you.

Let us know a little more about what you did and the condition of the
peaches and grapes and we can go from there.

Joe

It's hard to imagine adding so much sulfite that you can smell it, how
much did you add into what quantity of wine? It's hard to answer with
any precision without knowing that.

I use titrettes to measure sulfite, it costs around $1.25 to measure
using one. You can't use them if you are color blind and they can be
tricky at first. If you don't use them but have access to a winemaking
shop they will probably do it for you.

Let us know a little more about what you did and the condition of the
peaches and grapes and we can go from there.

Joe

Some are very sensitive to sulfite, so it is possible to get that much,
but it's an individual thing. Also, if you put in sulfite in the form
of Campden tablets and didn't get them completely dissolved, you can
get a white residue on the top of the liquid in the carboy, and your
headspace will have more of a sulfite smell than the wine.

I'd try the titrets (I've had good luck), but take a sample from down
within the carboy, if you understand what I mean. Also, smell the
sample, and see if it's as strong as the sniff you've already taken.

Rob

Some are very sensitive to sulfite, so it is possible to get that much,
but it's an individual thing. Also, if you put in sulfite in the form
of Campden tablets and didn't get them completely dissolved, you can
get a white residue on the top of the liquid in the carboy, and your
headspace will have more of a sulfite smell than the wine.

I'd try the titrets (I've had good luck), but take a sample from down
within the carboy, if you understand what I mean. Also, smell the
sample, and see if it's as strong as the sniff you've already taken.

Rob

David -
It could be something else, but it could be too much sulfite. This
is fairly easy to handle prior to bottling (simplest approach is to
rack a few times, with some good splashing). However, if you have
already bottled this batch, your options are more limited. You could
open all the bottles, pour the contents back into a carboy, and take it
from there (rack and splash) until the sulfite odor is gone, then
re-bottle (with fresh corks). Alternatively, you could do the same
thing when you open a bottle -- open it early, decant it (maybe pour it
back and forth once or twice) and let it sit for a while before
drinking. Time alone is a reasonable option only if you're very
patient -- if the bottles were properly corked, it could be years
before the sulfite level drops significantly. Most of us aren't that
patient. :-)

Doug

David -
It could be something else, but it could be too much sulfite. This
is fairly easy to handle prior to bottling (simplest approach is to
rack a few times, with some good splashing). However, if you have
already bottled this batch, your options are more limited. You could
open all the bottles, pour the contents back into a carboy, and take it
from there (rack and splash) until the sulfite odor is gone, then
re-bottle (with fresh corks). Alternatively, you could do the same
thing when you open a bottle -- open it early, decant it (maybe pour it
back and forth once or twice) and let it sit for a while before
drinking. Time alone is a reasonable option only if you're very
patient -- if the bottles were properly corked, it could be years
before the sulfite level drops significantly. Most of us aren't that
patient. :-)

Doug

"David J." > wrote in message
om...
> Got a question, I made some peach and muscadine wine back in late
> December
> early January I believe it was. I added a little bit more sulfite than I
> usually do. I head that peach oxidizes easily so I though I would add a
> little more sulfite for added protection. Now the wine has a funny
> flavor.

Your best course is to add more wine to it that has insufficient sulfite.
IOW you titrate the SO2 to the correct level.

To do this right, you need to know the pH of the wine and the free SO2.
That sounds hard but it really isn't. You need to know how to do those two
simple tests so you can avoid this problem in the future.

You also need to be aware that the correct amount of free SO2 depends on the
pH of the wine. As a rough approximation, the 2 digits to the right of the
decimal on the pH reading is what the free SO2 should be. E.g. for a wine
at pH 3.20 the free SO2 should be 20 ppm. At pH 3.50, the free SO2 should
be 50 ppm. Don't ask about wines at pH 4.00 or 2.90! ;^)

Tom S

"David J." > wrote in message
om...
> Got a question, I made some peach and muscadine wine back in late
> December
> early January I believe it was. I added a little bit more sulfite than I
> usually do. I head that peach oxidizes easily so I though I would add a
> little more sulfite for added protection. Now the wine has a funny
> flavor.

Your best course is to add more wine to it that has insufficient sulfite.
IOW you titrate the SO2 to the correct level.

To do this right, you need to know the pH of the wine and the free SO2.
That sounds hard but it really isn't. You need to know how to do those two
simple tests so you can avoid this problem in the future.

You also need to be aware that the correct amount of free SO2 depends on the
pH of the wine. As a rough approximation, the 2 digits to the right of the
decimal on the pH reading is what the free SO2 should be. E.g. for a wine
at pH 3.20 the free SO2 should be 20 ppm. At pH 3.50, the free SO2 should
be 50 ppm. Don't ask about wines at pH 4.00 or 2.90! ;^)

Tom S

Thanks, everyone for replying to this. I posted this along time ago
and got busy and forgot about it. I am pretty sure that it is
definitely too much sulfite because it is the same smell as when I am
cleaning my carboys. Sometimes for a quick rinse before I start a new
wine I rinse the carboy with a sulfite solution. This is how I came to
the determination that the issue was too much sulfite. I smell the
carboy for some reason.

I have already bottled these. I only made two one gallon batches so I
am not to terribly concerned. I added about 2 tsps of sulfite to each
gallon. I did this because I had read the peaches oxidize easily.

So the odor will dissipate naturally over time then? If that is the
case I will just let it sit for a year and try it. I have enough wine
that that wont be an issue.

Thanks,

David

wrote:
> Thanks, everyone for replying to this. I posted this along time ago
> and got busy and forgot about it. I am pretty sure that it is
> definitely too much sulfite because it is the same smell as when I am
> cleaning my carboys. Sometimes for a quick rinse before I start a
new
> wine I rinse the carboy with a sulfite solution. This is how I came
to
> the determination that the issue was too much sulfite. I smell the
> carboy for some reason.
>
> I have already bottled these. I only made two one gallon batches so
I
> am not to terribly concerned. I added about 2 tsps of sulfite to
each
> gallon. I did this because I had read the peaches oxidize easily.
>
> So the odor will dissipate naturally over time then? If that is the
> case I will just let it sit for a year and try it. I have enough
wine
> that that wont be an issue.
>
> Thanks,
>
> David

2 tsps of sulfite per gallon?!?! Holy mackerel, you bet you've got too
much sulfite - 1/4 tsp per 5 gallons is about 50ppm, so let's see, 2
tsps per 5 gals would be 400ppm, so for 1 gallon you've got 2000ppm!
That won't be drinkable in your lifetime, no matter what you do with
this wine.

Peaches might oxidize easily, I don't know, but you can't go overboard
with sulfite additions just because of that. Measure your pH and keep
the sulfite at the right level throughout the winemaking process and
the wine will be fine.

Pp

When you say undrinkable, should I just throw it out?

David


"pp" > wrote in message
ps.com...
>
> wrote:
> > Thanks, everyone for replying to this. I posted this along time ago
> > and got busy and forgot about it. I am pretty sure that it is
> > definitely too much sulfite because it is the same smell as when I am
> > cleaning my carboys. Sometimes for a quick rinse before I start a
> new
> > wine I rinse the carboy with a sulfite solution. This is how I came
> to
> > the determination that the issue was too much sulfite. I smell the
> > carboy for some reason.
> >
> > I have already bottled these. I only made two one gallon batches so
> I
> > am not to terribly concerned. I added about 2 tsps of sulfite to
> each
> > gallon. I did this because I had read the peaches oxidize easily.
> >
> > So the odor will dissipate naturally over time then? If that is the
> > case I will just let it sit for a year and try it. I have enough
> wine
> > that that wont be an issue.
> >
> > Thanks,
> >
> > David
>
> 2 tsps of sulfite per gallon?!?! Holy mackerel, you bet you've got too
> much sulfite - 1/4 tsp per 5 gallons is about 50ppm, so let's see, 2
> tsps per 5 gals would be 400ppm, so for 1 gallon you've got 2000ppm!
> That won't be drinkable in your lifetime, no matter what you do with
> this wine.
>
> Peaches might oxidize easily, I don't know, but you can't go overboard
> with sulfite additions just because of that. Measure your pH and keep
> the sulfite at the right level throughout the winemaking process and
> the wine will be fine.
>
> Pp
>

Smell it, if it's very strong on sulfite, taste a little bit. At that
level it might taste closer to a match stick than wine (I'm really not
trying to be a smart aleck, just warning you it may be very bad). You
would have to blend in about 20 to 40 gallons to reduce this to 50 to
100 PPM, so it may not be worth it. Sorry.

Joe

"David J." > wrote in message
m...
>> > I added about 2 tsps of sulfite to
>> each
>> > gallon. I did this because I had read the peaches oxidize easily.

The sun will go supernova before that peach brew becomes drinkable! Your IT
administrator would call this an "unrecoverable error". Sorry. :^(

Tom S

It actually does smell and taste like a match stick. I referred to it as
smoky to someone.

It wont hurt me to drink it though, just may taste bad?

Thanks,

David
"Joe Sallustio" > wrote in message
oups.com...
> Smell it, if it's very strong on sulfite, taste a little bit. At that
> level it might taste closer to a match stick than wine (I'm really not
> trying to be a smart aleck, just warning you it may be very bad). You
> would have to blend in about 20 to 40 gallons to reduce this to 50 to
> 100 PPM, so it may not be worth it. Sorry.
>
> Joe
>

I don't believe that SO2 is especially toxic to humans. At least,
I've never seen any posts about anyone getting sick from too much SO2
in their wine, nor does Pot. Meta come with any particular cautions
about toxicity, etc.

It sure wouldn't hurt to open the bottle early and decant the contents
(maybe pour it back and forth a few times, in a well-ventilated place).
But I don't think you'll be willing/able to drink enough of this stuff
for it to constitute a health hazard. Who knows -- it might even
disinfect your digestive tract . . .

Doug

"David J." > wrote in message
...
> It actually does smell and taste like a match stick. I referred to it as
> smoky to someone.
>
> It wont hurt me to drink it though, just may taste bad?

You might end up with an asthmatic reaction from drinking it, and it could
be quite severe. I'd dump it.

Tom S

Throw it away, sorry. I'm pretty sure the limit in wine in the US is
350 PPM (and that is total sulfite, you have around 2000 PPM free,
maybe 4000 PPM total). It's not worth doing anything with. I have
done dumber things, so just chalk it up to experience.

Joe