August 19, 2014
Both the 2011 and 2013 Vino Superiore Sangiovese are fermenting well having dropped about a third of their initial Brix. I usually like to add some nutrients to the fermentation at this stage to ensure that it completes to total dryness and without any problems, such as hydrogen sulfide (H2S).
Daily Brix measurements
My yeast nutrient of choice is Fermaid-K, which I added at a rate of 25 g/hL — that’s roughly just under 1.5 tsp to each bucket.
Now all I need to do is wait for fermentation to complete while reducing daily punchdowns from 3 to 2.
I am curious about your decision to bring the TA up to above 5.2 g/L on the 2011. Have you measured the TA (and perhaps even the pH) on the 2011 now that you are well into fermentation? If you have I would love to know the result. Even though my TA reading prior to fermentation was extremely low at .365 g/L, I followed Vino Superiore’s recommendation on the label to not adjust until day 3 as they have seen a big jump in TA and drop in pH once into the fermentation. They said perhaps due to the hot summer much of the acids were trapped in skins and aren’t released until a few days into the fermentation. Reading your post and reviewing how low my TA was pre-ferment I am now second guessing myself. Would love to see how yours progresses and if your TA / pH change much. thanks!
Thank you for you comment.
I added just 1 g/L of tartaric acid to bring TA in line with the 2013 – that’s the simple reason. But I also like it in that ballpark as, even though there might be some small increase during maceration and fermentation, malolactic fermentation and cold stabilization will bring the TA down again.
I don’t measure TA during fermentation; I do after the end of MLF. I never adjust TA after MLF and I know what to expect, so there is no need to measure unless I suspect a problem — but that’s just me.
Your TA would be 3.65 g/L (not 0.365). Yes, it’s low, and that’s why I added. It’s better to add before the AF.
Good luck
You can degas your sample for more accurate pH and TA measurements during fermentation.