Re: Wine Aging

"Jack Keller" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote in message
news:[EMAIL PROTECTED]
> Ray, I have been making wine for a lonnnng time. I bulk age in carboys
> where possible and have never had a carboy burst on me while filled
> with wine.  Further, I don't personally know anyone who has.  I broke
> one once when I set it down too hard on a cement floor, but that is my
> only casualty ever.  I don't think your worry is all that
> well-founded.  Carboys are pretty darned strong, even the cheap ones
> made in Mexico (I have eight of those).
>
> As for the risk of sucking airlock solution into the wine, I think
> that too is much overstated.  When bulk aging, I add 4 drops of
> glycerin to the airlock and then 10% sulfite solution until the liquid
> occupies about 1/3 of airlock.  With the glycerin, the liquid in the
> airlock will not drop 1/4 inch in four months.  Further, with the
> airlock filled to only 1/3, the liquid cannot be sucked up into the
> wine;  there just isn't enough of it to do that.
>
> Ullage of one to one-and-a-half inches is all the cushion one needs
> for a  five- or six-gallon carboy.  I wouldn't exceed two-and-a-half
> inches for a twelve-gallon demijohn.  If the top of the wine ever
> approached the bottom of the bung, all you need do is watch it and
> remove a bit with a wine thief if it made you nervous.  I currently
> have ten carboys and 24 gallon-jugs under airlock.  I look at every
> one of them at least once a week except when I'm out of town.  If
> something is going wrong, I see it.
>
> You make bulk aging in carboys sound like a crap shoot and it isn't.
> The only way it can go wrong (in my experience) is if someone (or the
> dog) bumps the airlock and jars it loose -- or if one is negligent.
>
> Sorry to be critical here, but I just think you are over-stating the
> dangers of bulk aging in glass.
>
> Jack Keller, The Winemaking Home Page
> http://winemaking.jackkeller.net/

Thaks to all for the suggestions.
I have been storing wine in this environment (12 gal DJs) for a few years
and haven't had an accident (yet).  I have left a couple of inches of
ullage.  I will be more carefull now that I understand the risks.
 I am in the process of insulating an area and hope to reduce the temp
fluctations dramatically so that I can start storing wine longer.

Jack, what does glyceride do for the airlock?

Joe