Strange readings .... oops !!

I started about a 4 gallon batch of Raspberry wine. I had 16 pounds of berries thawing in a large plastic tote, and added about 2 gallons of boiling water with about 16 pounds of sugar dissolved in it, and mixed them well. I let them sit until everything was thawed and back to around room temp. I pitched the pectic enzyme and the campden, and let it set for about 36 hours. Just before I added the yeast, I was trying to get a refractometer reading. I couldn't even see the line. So I went and read the recipe again, and I had missed the line where it said to add water to a specific level. The recipe was for one gallon, so I had to just start adding water until I got a reading. I added 2 gallons and I was at about 32 Brix. I ended up adding another gallon and a half, which brought it down to 26.4 Brix. I guess it pays to read the recipes more thoroughly before starting.

I just thought I would pass along my mishap.

I will update as time goes by. My plan is to pull out about 3 quarts and make a port style wine by fortifying it with Everlcear. I did it a couple years ago, and it turned out great. :rockin:

OK, so now I am confused. I strained out the raspberry pulp, and racked into a secondary. When I took a brix reading, it was around 10. The line was not very defined, but it was between the 10 and 11. When I took a hydrometer reading, it was at 1.004. So how can that be ? According to all the brix charts I have looked at, a 10 brix should be about a 1.040. I have calibrated my refractometer with the solution that came with it, and it was dead on at Zero.

The wine is still showing lots of activity yet. I am very confused at the huge difference in my readings. I will take another set of reading tonight and see where things are at, again. If anybody has some insight, I would gladly like to hear them.

You can't use Brix refractometer readings once fermentation starts w/o a conversion formula. Brix is a measurement of the weight of sugar in water. Fermentation creates alcohol, which is much lighter than water, so the reading isn't accurate. I'd go with the hydrometer.

OK, so with that info, My original reading should be accurate, correct ?

I will remember this for the future.

Thanks

Bombo80 said:

OK, so with that info, My original reading should be accurate, correct ?

Click to expand...

Yup.

Bombo80 said:

OK, so with that info, My original reading should be accurate, correct ?

I will remember this for the future.

Thanks

Click to expand...

Yes. The original brix reading would be accurate- it's only when alcohol is created that the reading isn't accurate. That is when you switch to the hydrometer, or use one of those refractometer conversion tables (Beersmith has one).