How late can you add sugar to a fermentation

[Midnightblue69]

I have just racked a batch of blackberry wine after 4 days from the initial fermentation crock and I have a specific gravity of 1.020. I am wanting a quite sweet country wine. The wine already smells quite dry if that makes any sense. I am afraid I do not have it sweet enough. is it to late to add sugar? Is there anyway to tell the sweetness from the hydrometer?

Also when the secondary fermentation is done(quits bubbling) is the yeast considered dead? Is it safe to add sugar to the wine after that? I also hear of people who drink fruit wine immediately after it's done with the secondary fermenting, say 5 weeks and others who rack it for many months. Does it make a difference in quality or is it just a matter of dryness and taste?

I know these are elementary questions and I appologize. I am new to all this and while I have read a bunch it's good to hear from people with experience. I appreciate it!!

 

[Yooper]

I have just racked a batch of blackberry wine after 4 days from the initial fermentation crock and I have a specific gravity of 1.020. I am wanting a quite sweet country wine. The wine already smells quite dry if that makes any sense. I am afraid I do not have it sweet enough. is it to late to add sugar? Is there anyway to tell the sweetness from the hydrometer?

Also when the secondary fermentation is done(quits bubbling) is the yeast considered dead? Is it safe to add sugar to the wine after that? I also hear of people who drink fruit wine immediately after it's done with the secondary fermenting, say 5 weeks and others who rack it for many months. Does it make a difference in quality or is it just a matter of dryness and taste?

I know these are elementary questions and I appologize. I am new to all this and while I have read a bunch it's good to hear from people with experience. I appreciate it!!

1.020 is sweet! I don't have a sweet tooth, so I find 1.020 cloyingly, sickeningly sweet. I'd wait and see what happens as you have about 6 months to let it finish up and see if it needs sweetening. Depending on the OG and the yeast you used, it might finish as low as .990, and then it may need stabilizing and sweetening in the end.

The yeast is not dead after fermentation. if you add sugar, it'll ferment out and you'll have a dry rocket fuel to drink. Once the wine is clear, and racked off of the sediment a few times, and it's done fermenting, you can stabilize with sorbate and sulfite, and then add sugar to taste before bottling.

You can overwhelm the yeast by adding more sugar incrementally, ending up with a sweet wine without stabilizing but it's harder to do than you'd imagine. Happy yeast can easily go over 18% ABV, so you have a rocket fuel wine that takes years to age out.

I'd just let it sit for two months where it is. Then if there is a lot of sediment, rack it and let it sit two more months. Then check the FG and taste and see where you're at.

The reason for letting the wine sit a bit is so it'll clear and have less crud and sediment in it. Also, if it's "hot" from high alcohol, it will mellow a bit with aging.

 

[Midnightblue69]

Yooper, when you say let it sit for two months where it is, do you mean with an airlock attached or corked and put away? The 1.02 is just the SG after 5 days, is the end SG a good indication of how sweet a wine is?

Also if you drink the wine early, say after 5 weeks as I have seen, is it unhealthy for you or is it just not a great quality yet?

Thank you!!

 

[Yooper]

Yooper, when you say let it sit for two months where it is, do you mean with an airlock attached or corked and put away? The 1.02 is just the SG after 5 days, is the end SG a good indication of how sweet a wine is?

Also if you drink the wine early, say after 5 weeks as I have seen, is it unhealthy for you or is it just not a great quality yet?

Thank you!!

You must airlock it, and top it up! You want to keep it from oxidizing and protect it from contaminates.

An SG after primary is no indication of where it will end- this wine should end at .990 or so once it's done, depending on the health of the yeast.

It's not unhealthy to drink it early. It's just unappetizing. It won't harm you!