Whether the wine is in barrels at a winery or carboys at home, there isn’t as much activity to do with the wine during the winter and spring months. Occasionally I’ll glance at the carboys and then go on with what I was doing. Yesterday, after a seven-day visit to Virginia wineries, I glanced at the carboys. One didn’t look right.
The liquid in my Cabernet Sauvignon 5-gallon carboy airlock had turned a pinkish color. Upon closer inspection, I notices about a 3/8” piece of mold growing on the inside of the airlock above the level of the liquid. Obviously I was concerned. My first inclination was to look at the surface of the wine and smell it. The surface looked fine and the aroma seemed good. So my next task was to clean the airlock and sanitize it.
This is the first time I experienced a color change and mold growing in the airlock. Should I be concerned? Should I have done more than inspecting and cleaning? What caused the color of the liquid to change to pink? Why did the mold form? Could something be wrong?
Leave a Reply