Maturation

When fermentation is completely finished the new wine will begin to clear from the top downwards and a thick deposit will be seen at the bottom of the jar. The first racking should now be made, by siphoning the wine into a clean jar and making sure that none of the residue accompanies it. The jar should be topped up with excess wine of the same ferment, with a similar type wine or with a little sugar dissolved in boiled water and allowed to cool. It is important that the jar should be well filled and that there is no large air space between the wine and well-fitting cork. You will find that most recipes for a gallon of wine make up to 10 pints, so that if you use a gallon jar for fermentation you will need a smaller jar for the residue. Keep it plugged with cotton wool as an airlock, and use it for topping up after racking. After two months the wine should be looked at again and a further deposit will be seen at the bottom of the jar. The wine will look much clearer now. Rack it again and top up as before. Repeat this process in a month or two. Then the final racking can be made when the wine is bottled—about six months after the end of fermentation.