What do you think of my making a batch of alcohol intended for hard liquor (water, sugar and yeast) and adding that to the wine?
Ok, so I guess I’ve got a bit of the writing bug today.
Nope, don’t use the water/sugar/yeast thing.
That is what distillers would call a sugar wash (a type of one anyway). In addition to those three ingredients a sugar wash also requires periodic feedings of nutrients. But as emjay says, it would badly dilute the flavor. Don’t use a sugar wash.
Your best bet if you want to give a real salvage a try would be to establish another grape ferment ... essentially a giant starter, and add it to your failed must.
YES, this is LONG ... but the topic comes up occasionally and maybe it will help others who may be looking for such info.
Others might not go thru all the steps that I outline ... but if I was going through the trouble of trying to rescue an expensive batch I’d sure try to do all I could to insure the best chance of success.
Let me say ... I don't know if it would be better to *include* in the process I outline below, the method Jack Keller notes which uses huge pitches of bread yeast.
I guess the "proof will be in the pudding"
That having been said ... without the bread yeast method for sorbate removal ... this is how I would do it.
~~ Restarting a Sorbated Must Using a Starter ~~
Items needed from the winemakers/brewers supply ...
2 packets Lalvin EC-1118 yeast
Yeast Energizer (not straight DAP)
pH Test tape
Possibly Potassium Bicarbonate if necessary (see below)
64oz Welch's Grape Juice (or similar)
You’ll need to ...
1) do work on the failed batch of must
2) establish a “yeast starter” .
3) then combine them.
First ... set out the Welch's Grape Juice and the bucket of failed must so that they are both at room temperature.
Treating the Failed Batch ...
As I mentioned in my previous post, on the failed batch you need to let it settle so the sediment collects on the bottom and then rack the wine off of the sediment into a new bucket (primary fermenter).
This is at least in part because the fining agents (the chitosan and kieselsol) will act to remove the new yeast you’ll be introducing from suspension in the wine and interfere with fermentation ... particularly as you’ll be agitating the must to oxygenate it for fermentation.
After racking to the new container you need to add water to adjust your SG to one more reasonable ... I would say an opening gravity of not more than 1.090.
As sugar increases in solution there is a point where the stress and mortality of the yeast increases because osmotic pressures de-hydrate the yeast cells.
1.090 is safe.
After adjusting with the water, then you should take a pH reading of the failed must. This requires pH test tape.
This is particularly important if you added any acids that were included in the wine kit such as tartaric acid, or an acid blend etc.
You want it to be at above pH 3.8 for the yeast to be happiest. I would not go lower than pH 3.8 as you don’t want to stall the yeast if any drop in pH occurs as a result of the ferment.
Although I suspect that your failed must has a pH 3.8 or above, if it is below that number you should seriously consider using Potassium Bicarbonate (a chemical from the winemakers store) per its directions to raise the pH.
Finally, add a standard dose of Yeast Energizer to the failed must.
Energizer contains b-complex vitamins and thiamin is particularly important if your failed must had any metabisulfite added to it (sulfites interfere with the availability of the that important yeast nutrient).
Making the Starter ...
Yeast
For your new starter, as was mentioned EC-1118 is a good choice. Personally I’d get two packets of that yeast. One for use in the starter and one to sprinkle on top of the must ... there is going to be high mortality and stress for the yeast because of the sorbate and so I’d go with a higher yeast “pitch rate”.
Juice
For the grape juice, you can either use a grape juice product intended for making wine or actually just use Welch’s grape juice in the 64oz container from the supermarket. This is the one that if you read the ingredient list it says that it contains no preservatives and only has (as I recall) a bit of ascorbic acid added to it. You’ll need just one 64oz container.
Welch’s has a pH of about 3.8 naturally ... although it’s SG is only about 1.066 (8.8% ABV).
Because EC-1118 is a high speed yeast that will rip through the nutrients and use up the natural sugar in the grape juice fairly quickly; you should raise the sugar content of the Welch’s grape juice.
Add 4-1/2 oz of sugar to the 64oz of Welch’s grape juice and stir until dissolved (you’ll probably need a larger container to do this) to bring the SG up to 1.080.
If you have it, you should also add 1/8 teaspoon “Yeast Energizer” to the Welch’s (in any regard, half of a standard dose of energizer).
This “energizer” is one of the two common nutrient chemicals added to wine. The other is straight DAP (diammonium phosphate). Although most yeast energizers contain a small amount of DAP, do not add straight DAP to the starter.
Rehydrate the Yeast
You should first re-hydrate the yeast in water before combining with grape juice. This will retain the maximum number of yeast and in the least damaged state verses just putting the dry yeast directly into the juice.
To rehydrate ... In a small clean glass, add one packet of EC-1118 yeast to two tablespoonfuls of water that is 104* degrees (101* to 104* is ok -
but absolutely NO hotter !!). Stir it to break up any clumps and let the yeast sit in the water for 25 minutes.
Assemble the Starter
Make sure that the grape juice and also the rehydrated yeast are at the SAME temperature now ... room temperature is fine at 75* to 80*.
Take a large container ... a gallon jug would work well, and add ½ cup of the Welch's grape juice to it. Now SHAKE the container for 60 seconds. Add the rehydrated yeast and mix it in. Put a piece of cloth over the top so stuff doesn’t fall/fly into the jug and let it sit at room temperature.
Fermentation should start fairly soon.
Two hours later ... shake your container of Welch’s grape juice briefly and add another half cup to the starter jug.
Four hours later ... shake your container of Welch’s and add 1 cup to the starter jug.
Four hours later ... add 1 cup of the Welch’s ALONG WITH
½ cup OF THE FAILED SORBATED MUST to the starter.
Shake the jug of starter briefly.
Four hours later add 1 cup of the Welch’s along with
1 CUP of the FAILED SORBATED MUST to the starter.
(Add to the failed must bucket any Welch’s grape juice that is NOT already in the starter jug)
Four hours later shake the jug of starter for 2 minutes ... vigorously STIR the bucket of failed must for about 3-4 minutes with a large sanitized spoon ...
and now add the whole jug of starter to the bucket of must and stir it in.
Take the other packet of EC-1118 yeast and sprinkle it over the surface of the wine in the bucket.
DO NOT STIR in the dry yeast you’ve sprinkled over the top (!).
Secure a thin cloth over the bucket and leave it in an area where the temperature is (ideally) 80* to 85* degrees (but no hotter).
Go to a church, light a candle and say a prayer to St. Vincent, the patron saint of winemakers. ;-)