I'm finally getting to try my new FastFerment (what's this?), a new and improved reincarnation of the V Vessel from FastBrewing & WineMaking.
I love making wine, but I also enjoy using equipment that makes turning grape juice into wine easy without compromising quality. And a passion of mine is testing new products. And so it is I decided this winemaking season to try a 20-liter (5-gallon) batch of California Sauvignon Blanc.
Why Sauv Blanc?
It's one of my favorite whites but, more important in the context of this test, is that it's a variety sensitive to oxygen. Although I will not be quantifying oxygen uptake amounts and levels, any significant problems with oxygen will be easily detected with this varietal. There are many possible oxygen entry points – the top cover, through valve fittings, and thermometer-well and sampling ports. But everything seems well designed with a conscious effort to minimize, or eliminate, possible oxygen ingress.
There have been concerns in various forums about the large headspace volume, about 10 liters (2.5 gallons) with 20 liters of juice. Yes, this would be a concern for long-term storage, but the FastFerment was designed primarily for making kit wines and wines from fresh juice meant to be processed and drunk relatively quickly. It's still a long time from the end of fermentation to filtering and bottling, a period when there is no more CO2 in the headspace to protect the wine. This is easily dealt with by using a CO2 cylinder and flushing the headspace with CO2 gas. Granted it's additional equipment and costs, and likely beyond the interest of most hobby winemakers at this scale.
Getting Ready to Test the FastFerment
The first step was to clean and sanitize the unit. I used hot water for pre-rinsing followed by a thorough cleaning with Powdered Brewery Wash, or PBW, an alkali cleaner from Five Star Chemicals and Supply, as suggested in the instructions. Since the unit is manufactured from HDPE plastic, it is compatible with most cleaning and sanitizing agents. I also used the 20-minute contact period to check for leaks – there were none.
For sanitizing, I used a sulfur-citric solution at a concentration of roughly 10,000 mg/L of sulfite plus equal parts of citric acid. Citric acid not only increases sulfite efficacy but it also neutralizes alkaline residues. I finished off with a thorough hot-water rinse.
The complete cleaning and sanitizing process was very easy to perform, particularly that the vessel empties quickly and easily – no more need to flip carboys over. A floor drain makes this whole process that much easier.
Before doing anything, I measured the pH, TA, SG/Brix/PA and temperature of the juice to ensure everything was good. TA was a bit low for my liking, so I added tartaric acid to increase it from 4.4 g/L to 7.0 g/L.
Then, I poured the juice into the FastFerment. The large 6-inch hole makes pouring simple. I did use a large funnel at first given that the pail of juice was full to the rim. I decided to keep the bottom valve closed for now to facilitate stirring until fermentation starts and becomes vigorous. I will also not be doing that first racking (usually at SG 1.030) instead preferring to ferment completely to dryness before any racking.
I prepared the yeast and yeast nutrients and then inoculated the juice, and gave it a good stir with my drill-mounted stirring rod. This is the only cumbersome part thus far – stirring. The conical shape makes it difficult to reach any sediments at the bottom – another reason for keeping the valve closed for now. With a little practice, it becomes easy to stir into the narrow portion of the conical shape by using the (variable-speed) drill on slow to keep the paddles from opening up, and then moving it up and increasing speed. Although the paddles are made of hard plastic, I was still careful not to touch the wall of the vessel so as not to cause any scratches that might otherwise harbor microbes and complicate the cleaning and sanitizing process.
Everything is ready now. I set the cover and fermentation lock in place.
All I need to do now is wait for fermentation to start.
Daniel
Would love to see follow up information about the product
The fact that you seem so interested in testing the possibility of oxygen degradation seems to indicate that by design the headspace might be too big. I have used -and continue to use- the previous version V-Vessel for several years and adapted my home wine making techniques to it. First I made sure my V-Vessel was hooked up over the big laundry room sink. Some wines will bubble out no matter what you do.I installed 2 brackets, one to lower it as much as I could while giving me enough room to fill it and bottle, the second one higher so that I could use my sink if needed. Second I started my primary fermentation with 21.5 to 22 liters and did the top up to 23 at the so called secondary fermentation. Third, I created a gadget that combines a airlock with a Wine pump cap. This type of airlock is ideal because it actually concentrates more the CO2 in the headspace, since it is a bit more difficult for the CO2 to escape this type of airlock, because of the design, while allowing a gentle pump of the excess oxygen when we need to remove the bung. I hooked up at some point a T with a vacuum/pressure gauge to test the negative pressure and CO2 concentration and make sure I was safe without distorting the plastic. After a while you can feel the number of pumps you need. I also developed a recipe to extract oak flavours from oak chips in a small bottle with a mix of alcohol and half a campden, using also wine pump to get quickly the liquid through the wood and extract. I was able to get a good tasting red wine without putting any oak chip in the V-Vessel clogging it. I also found that using a flash lite will tell you when a gentle stir is needed to unclog the base and facilitate the transfer to the collector.
Thank you for your tips — those are great. Headspace – large headspace – is indeed a problem for average home winemakers who do not have the know-how, experience or simply the interest in dealing with the headspace. I have both the old and new versions of the V-vessel. I use them both and make good use of them, and I use CO2 to purge headspace after racking.
Thanks for sharing.
I too have the V Vessel, I bought two used. I was unable to track down any instructions on line for it. I will be using the fast Ferment manual until I can source one.
I am just about to start my first wine, so I was happy to see this Blog. any online forums, or resources for the V vessel wold be appreciated
Chris
You can use the FastFerment instructions for the V Vessel; it’s the same operation.
You mentioned how difficult the stirring could be with the V-Vessel or fast ferment. Again I adapted my wine making technique to it. I modified the WineExpert three prong degasser by gently warming up each leg over the kitchen stove top burner, giving each leg a bent shape towards the centre. It works extremely well and never scratched the V- Vessel. Doing the quick change of rotation when some foam is forming works its magic.
Good trick. Thank you again for sharing.