Floaters in my finished cider/wine

[fullmoonv]

OK, So I made a really good Black Cherry wine/cider. I clarified it for days, and every time I open my bottle, the bubbles start flowing and a lot of the yeast etc comes to the top and floats. My friend noticed it right away. I know it won't hurt you but it makes it thick and kind of gross. I tried to filter it through a coffee filter but it just plugged right up.any suggestions to get rid of the sludge when it's on top AND bottom???
Thanks!

PS. I have a friend who makes plum wine with all the fancy equipment and wine bottles and all... I noticed the same problem in his wine too. Still tastes great, just kind of gross!

[drdancan]

Refrigerate the bottles when fermentation is finished. This stops the foaming and the yeast will settle to the bottom.

[saramc]

Take a piece of nylon, think clean panty hose, and moisten it with water and then use the nylon like a strainer. You can use a single layer or double/triple it by folding. I would recommend double/triple layer. This will help screen and filter the sediment. But, but aware that yeast will continue to drop out of your wine for quite a while. As an amateur winemaker I have learned that it can take up to a year or more for all the sediment to quit dropping on a wine. If you try the nylon trick and then want another level of protection when serving, look for a bottle stopper/pourer that is made of silicone or plastic and fits in the neck of the bottle, but this stopper actually has a slender column of filtering mesh built into it. I bought 3 of them at my local liquor store in the aisle where you find wine stoppers, cork screws and such.
Unfortunately, as long as you have sediment the bubbles will disturb it and bring them to the surface, the only way to get rid of the sediment in a sparkling wine is to RIDDLE it. The true process of removing the dead yeast (that is what drops to the bottom in the refrigerator) from a sparkling wine is called RIDDLING....a complex process that takes some practice. Think storing bottles on a slant, and freezing the neck of the bottle, opening the bottle and removing the plug of frozen ick.
You CAN filter with the nylon or other methods, but be aware that every time you pour that sparkling wine out of that bottle into another container in order to filter you are letting some of those bubbles escape. So if you do that too many times you may end up with a still wine. BUT, if that happens, make a sugar syrup (1 part water, 2 part sugar) and put 1-2 teaspoons of the syrup into the bottle, then slowly add your filtered wine, SLOWLY because it may volcano on you, then cork it and put it back in the refrig. Leave it alone in the refrig for a few days and your bubbles will likely be back, I ALWAYS get carbonation back by the 7th day on a wine that I have not added any stabilizing additives to (sorbate,k-meta).