Author: Bryan likins

Do you wait for the completion of Malolactic fermentation before adding sulfite to your wine? This reduces the overall acidity of your wine, leading to a smooth, softer mouth feel and a pleasant complexity in nose and taste. If malic acid levels are not reduced below around 0.1 g/L, there is significant risk that fermentation will start up again in the bottle, popping corks and/or making that beautiful red you so lovingly put up in your cellar turn fizzy! So it’s important to have accurate information on your malic acid levels. Keep Reading More!

Sulfur Dioxide, or SO2, is a chemical compound used by winemakers to help keep their wine protected from the negative effects of oxygen exposure as well as spoilage microorganisms. Free SO2 is important for determining preservation ability. Total SO2 is not as important for home winemakers because it is usually measured to fulfill export regulatory requirements. Regular testing for Free SO2 allows for the winemaker to make the necessary additions to the wine to avoid spoilage. Vinmetrica’s SC-100A and SC-300 test for not only Free SO2 but Total SO2 as well, when you purchase separately our 1N NaOH solution. For more information about Free SO2 and Total SO2, check out this link to the MoreWine article: SO2 Management by Shea A.J. Comfort. http://morewinemaking.com/public/pdf/so2.pdf

We’ve been getting a lot of buzz from cider makers the past few weeks asking if our units can test SO2 levels in cider, and they do! We have several customers that use our various instruments to test their cider for SO2 with great success. Using the same method as found in our product manuals, you can test your cider for SO2 the same way you would test your wine!