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+--- Thread: Sediment at the bottom of the bottle (/thread-16333.html)
- JimmyJ - 08-14-2003
forgive me, I am a new wine drinker!
I just opened a bottle of 2000 Syrah, and the cork was encrusted with a crystalline substance like sugar, and the bottom of the bottle was muddied with more of the same.
What is this, and is it normal? Or did I get a bad bottle? [img]http://www.wines.com/ubb2/confused.gif[/img]
Thanks,
JimmyJ
- Kcwhippet - 08-14-2003
Those are potassium bitartrate crystals. Tartrates are naturally ocurring and they are completely harmless. They show up when a bottle of wine has been cooled down enough to cause the tartrate to precipitate out as crystals. A lot of wineries actually cool down their wines and remove the tartrates before bottling. They then sell the stuff which is cleaned up and ground into a powder, then sold in supermarkets as cream of tartar.
- JimmyJ - 08-15-2003
Thanks Kcwhippet -
After posting, I continued searching the NG and found that tidbit of information (I guess I should have searched better first!).
The other posts that I found mentioned that these tartrates are pink in colour in reds; however, in the bottle I had they were deep red, almost black, and grainy.
Even though these are "harmless", they sure look nasty when you finish the last glass! I would be embarassed if a guest found it in his/her last sip...I guess I should look into decantering? I've never considered it before, nor even knew what it was...so I'm off to search past posts!
Thanks again,
JimmyJ.
- Innkeeper - 08-15-2003
When I find dark red stuff in the bottom of the bottle I can't tell if it is tartrates or sediment. So, I get rid of them either by careful pouring or by filtering the last fourth or third of the bottle.