Didnt use yeast energizer for blueberry wine

[Rockywoodwine]

Using a 5 gallon recipe for blueberry wine. It called for acid blend, pectic enzyme, and yeast energizer neither of which I had but I had 15lbs of fresh, ripe blueberries so I decided to just go ahead and start it anyway.

I always take the mindset..."well how did they make wine 100 yrs ago without yeast energizer, pectic enzyme, and acid blend?" And then I think they probably just made wine that had lower alcohol content and off tastes.

Back to my original thought.....

Started primary fermentation 4 days ago and it seemed to start slow but I checked it today and there was a thick layer of foam and when I stirred it seemed like it was ready to jump out of the bucket it was fizzing and foaming. It has a strong smell of fermentation as well. Exactly like you would think fermenting fruit wine would smell like. Not sulfury or anything that would indicate distressed yeast. I made a batch of raspberry wine last year without those 3 things and it has such a strong alcohol content I call it prison hooch. It does not taste bad either.

So my question is.....do i risk stuck fermentation in secondary? Do i risk limiting the alcohol content of my wine? I am aware of the pectic haze issues but am not too worried about it. I am not opposed to using the additives I just don't have any at this particular moment and my budget, however cheap they might be, will not allow me to purchase them for another month or so.


OG 1.09
used campden tablets
thoroughly cleaned and sanitized all equipment

 

[gratus fermentatio]

Sounds like it's off to a good start. I always use yeast nutrient/energizer & DAP. But if you don't, you can still make good wine. Depends a bit on the yeast strain too. RC-212 NEEDS extra nitrogen/nutrient to avoid production of H2S. Other strains are better at dealing with low nutrient, like K1-V1116. If you make wine like they did 100 years ago, you'll end up with wine like they had 100 years ago. If the fermentation isn't too far along, you could always add nutrient, just don't add the dry powder to the fermenting must, mix it with some boiled & cooled water 1st. Adding dry powder could cause a massive foam-over.
Regards, GF.

 

[pumpkinman2012]

I wouldn't worry about acid blend in blueberry wine, blueberries are fairly acidic on their own.
I will try to answer your questions, but without knowing the recipe that you used, it['s hard to give specific answers.
The alcohol content of the wine will depend on if you added any sugar to the must to raise the, I usually start my fruit wines around 1.070 -1.090 depending on what fruit I am using, you started at 1.090, this is perfect.
Pectic enzyme would help it clear, but the natural color of the blueberry wine will hide that some.
You really want to use a good yeast nutrient such as Fermaid K, it is a complete Yeast nutrient that helps keep the yeast healthy, and healthy yeast make healthy fermentations.
As far as making wine like they did 100 yrs ago, it is nice to try to get back to the roots of wine making, but remember, 100 yrs ago the Life expectancy in the USA for a male was 46 yrs old...lol...I'm not ready to try to go back to that era, the improvements made in wine making since then are in place for a reason..lol
Your wine will be fine.

 

[Rockywoodwine]

Haha I have a coworker who says the exact same thing whenever I try to romanticize the past. Women died in childbirth, no one lived past 45, your teeth fell out, etc.

As far as the recipe goes it just called for 13lbs blueberries, 11lbs sugar, and the pectic enzyme, yeast energizer, acid blend, and yeast. Nothing fancy.

I used the only packet of yeast I had left.... Red Star- Cote des Blancs.

Unfortunately I won't be able to get any yeast energizer in it before primary is done so will just have to hope for the best.

Checked it today (today was day 4 in primary) and it had an inch of foam on the top and when I stirred it was fizzing and bubbling a lot. It has a strong fermentation smell but like I said in my earlier post nothing sulfury or anything like that. Just a strong alcohol type smell it almost burns your nose if you get to close.

Measured SG it is at 1.11. What measurement do you suggest racking at?

I am going to be ordering supplies soon and wanted some suggestions for an all around workhorse yeast for fruit wines which is what I will be primarily working with due to my close proximity to an orchard.

 

[pumpkinman2012]

Do you mean that your Sg is at 1.010?, you mentioned that it started at 1.090, I'd wait until it is fermented to dry, between .994-.992, it sounds like it is still fermenting real well. I never use yeast energizer, all you really need is a good yeast nutrient such as Fermaid K.
There are a few real nice yeasts that do well with fruit, check out this link: Yeasts, click on the individual yeasts and a window will open telling you about each yeast and what characteristics that it will bring to your wine.

 

[Rockywoodwine]

Ok so im back asking questions about this batch I started in early July.

Racked after 10 days to secondary and have not touched it since....

Tomorrow will be 9 weeks in secondary without removing the air lock for anything...not even testing SG. I have done visual inspections and it has been fermenting nicely this entire time with air bubbles every 7 secs at the beginning to now every 20 secs or so.

I checked it today and it is still fermenting...can visibly see bubbles rising up the side of the carboy and the airlock is bubbling every 20 secs or so. It is a beautiful purplish red color and smells fine coming out of top of airlock. However, I noticed today there is some white, like bleach white, stuff floating on the top that was not there a week ago. Quite frankly, it looks like mold. I dont know how else to describe it. One spot is about the size of a dime and the other about the size of a penny. There is a lot of organic blueberry matter that has settled out but some is still floating on the top where the white stuff resides. Temp is held pretty steady in the house and the carboy sits in a closet in a room with no direct sunlight.

Lots of questions here....

1. Is this mold and should I throw it out?

2. Is 9 weeks too long in secondary even if fermentation is still active?
I know I know....I need to check SG but I havent removed the airlock for anything so far and just have hesitated to do so, plus time and energy to do so are a factor for me so its just been easier to "let it sit".

3. If this is something undesirable is it related to not using any of the additives I listed in previous posts?

4. Is the organic matter a problem in any secondary fermentation? I used a mesh fruit bag not sure how or why it looks like there are pieces of blueberry floating around.

5. Is the white stuff dead yeast?

Thanks for your help!


Thanks for everyones help!