The process of moving wine from one vessel to another using simple equipment and gravity has been developed in Burgundy.It is more gentle to rack wine than it is to use a pump to stir up the water.Depending on the type of wine you're making, you may need to rack it several times over the course of the process.To make the job go as smoothly as possible, you can learn how to rack your wine and when.
Step 1: You should get the proper equipment to store your wine.
Most of the tools used to rack wine will be standard in home wine-making kits or at any home-brewing retailer.You'll need an air-lock cap for the wine and at least two carboys.
Step 2: Prepare a meta solution to sterilize your siphon tube.
Meta solution is a mixture of metabisulfite and water.These can be mixed at home.A small amount of meta solution needs to be distilled in a gallon of water.If you want to sterilize everything that's going to touch the wine, you need to put it in a bucket or through a tube, then dump it into a safe place.It's a good idea to use meta-solution in aventilated area and wear breathing protection when handling it.The package has directions.
Step 3: Place the wine on a raised surface.
Place the wine on a raised surface after opening it up.Depending on the amount of wine you're making, you may need a lot of space to do this.If you're trying to suck the wine, make sure you have a long tube.The process involves gravity, so it's essential that the full carboy of wine be higher than the tallest portion of the clean receptacle you're going to use to catch the wine, or else it won't work.
Step 4: The siphon should be inserted in the carboy.
Make sure you don't touch the bottom of the carboy by placing the siphon tube into it.By the time you're ready to drink the wine, you should be able to see the line of sediment fairly clearly.If you let the tube fall most of the way into the wine, keep it at least an inch or two above the line.If you put the other end into the clean receptacle, it will hang above.Make sure the tube is long enough to fit in the receptacle before you put it in.
Step 5: The wine should be sucked.
If you start sucking on the other end of the tube as if you're drinking from a straw, you can get it into the clean vessel as quickly as possible.It takes practice to do this without spilling or getting a mouthful of wine.A mouthful of wine.It's not the worst.When the wine starts flowing, put the tube quickly into the receptacle and try to keep the flow quiet.Make sure you don't stir it up or put a lot of oxygen into the wine by keeping a close eye on it.If the second carboy becomes full, cut the hose to stop the flow of the wine.
Step 6: Take your loss.
Winemaking is an art, and you're going to lose some wine in the process.When did you suck enough off?You'll be making the call on your own.It's part of the job.Don't worry if you have to skim over the top of the water to get all the wine out.If you're making your own wine, there's a small amount left at the end.
Step 7: With an airlock, cap the newly filled carboy.
Once you've gotten the wine in the new vessel, install the airlock on top, which should be screwed on securely and then clamped down.It's important to follow the instructions of the manufacturer.Most of them will be plugged into the opening in the carboy.
Step 8: It's a good idea to rack your wine when it needs to move.
When moving wine from the primary fermenter to the secondary vessel and then to a bulk aging vessel, the rack process will be used.Wine is racked to help clarify the wine and remove some of the mess.Depending on the variety of wine you're making and your own taste in wine, the process and vigorousness of rack will largely depend on you.Some wine makers rack only once and others rack four or five times, depending on the flavor profile they're going for and how clear they want the wine.If you want to eventually filter your wine, you don't need to rack it more than once or twice.
Step 9: The first rack should be done after 4-7 days.
It's a good time to put it in a carboy with an airlock because you'll need to move it from the first vessel anyway.Don't rack your wine too early.If the process is too active, it can be dangerous for carboys and barrels.For most of the time, carboys are made safe by wearing an airlock, which helps to let gasses escape the vessel, but keeps outsiders out.
Step 10: When the fermentation is done, put it in a container.
Sometimes after a few days more and sometimes after as much as a month, the second rack comes when the wine is finished.The spent yeast needs to be removed as much as possible since it shouldn't affect the fermentation process anymore.The yeast needs to be air-locked as it becomes less active a week into the process.The better the first step is, the less it makes it through.As much as 80 percent of the material will already be in place by this point in the process.
Step 11: Place the wine in a container again.
Most wine is racked three times.When the wine is completely cleared up, the third and final rack should be completed, and this last one should only be used to remove the debris.If the finished product needs to be very clean and clear to satisfy the style and variety, some winemakers might choose to rack wine again.The clearest wine can be obtained if winemakers rack several more times.You don't need to rack it if you're adding sulfites to the wine.
Step 12: You don't want to rack every wine.
Some white wines don't need to be racked and are bottled on the lee, or sur lie aging.The wine is usually bottled on the lee in order to alter and integrate the oakiness of the wine.If you want to try a bottle of white wine on the lee, you need to taste the batches often and bottle most of it when it tastes right.
Step 13: Don't go on the side of more rackeds.
When you rack wine, you expose it to a lot of oxygen and it will accelerate the aging process.Since the sanitization process is prone to human error, it's better to put the wine through fewer barrels.Less is more.