rocket fuel

i stabilized my blackberry wine to day, and tasted it and realized i made a batch of rocket fuel. og was 1.092 and fg was .960 i figured about 12.5 % but didnt realize it would be that strong its harsh to the throat and numbs your tounge, its been about 10 weeks since i started the wine . is this normal? will ageing mellow it out? i plan on backsweetening it will that help? if so about how long will it be before its drinkable?

thanks

i did add the potasium sorbate and the campden before i tasted could this caused the numbness? its been about 2 hours since i tasted and tounge is still slightly numb.

"Hotness" is typically fusel alcohols. They are can be a product of too warm of a fermentation.

Young meads are notorious for tasting like rocket fuel. I'm not familiar enough with fruit wines to know if it's typical or not. But, a lot of it should condition out over time.

i kept it in my cellar which stays about 67 degrees i thought that would be fine, is that to warm?

Yes, it'll be fine in 10-12 months. One way to avoid the alcohol harshness is to backsweeten a little, In fact, you could try adding a little sugar to a bottle, shake it up, and allow it to sit a few minutes. Otherwise, aging is the answer.

i plan on sweetening after this weekend and bottleing i will age some but am anxious to drink, this is my first batch ever.

outdoorsmadness said:

i plan on sweetening after this weekend and bottleing i will age some but am anxious to drink, this is my first batch ever.

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Well, with an OG of 1.092 and a FG of .996 (I'm sure .960 is a typo, and you meant .996), that's an ABV of 12.6%, which is fine. It'll taste "hot" for a year or two. Wine really can't be rushed. If you want to make something quicker to drink, a lower ABV cider or wine would probably be more satisfactory.

I made a blackberry wine with about the same ABV% in May 2006. It's starting to be pretty good now, but still a little "hot". In another six months or so, it should be about perfect. Blackberry wines are great, but if they are over about 10%, it takes a couple of years for them to be really drinkable.

i back sweeten my fuel today 1.75 lbs sugar in a 3 gallon batch, medium sweet, it taste good but still a harsh bite.