homemade mayhaw jelly wine

[goteamwhatever]

So I went to my great grandmothers and she gave me a bunch of mayhaw jelly she had made. So I brought it home with me on a mission to make homemade mayhaw jelly wine. So tonight I took about 12 cups of mayhaw jelly and put in stock pot with 20 cups of water and slowly brought to a boil skimming off what froth came to top, didn't get all of it. After it started boiling I removed it from the heat. Let sit for 15 minutes or so and poured it into my 5 Gallon carboy. Added cold water to bring to right under 5 gallon and added 5 crushed campden tablets to cup of hot water to dissolve then poured into carboy. checked sg which was at 1.040. I want a sweet wine so I added sugar to bring up sg. Got it to 1.080. Covered with clean rag secured with a band. Will check sg again tomorrow before I add my yeast. Got a package of lalvin k1 v1116.

 

[goteamwhatever]

We`ll see how it turns out. I'll keep y'all posted.

 

[Goofynewfie]

The k1v-1116 will make that ferment to dry with an abv of approx 10.5%. with enough sugar and nutrient that yeast is capable of reaching 18 percent.

 

[goteamwhatever]

Well I have that or fleishmans active dry from the grocery store lol. How do I get my alcohol content to 18 add more sugar or what

 

[goteamwhatever]

I was shooting for an St of 1.140 to 1.180. But as I was adding sugar the sg was barely moving.

 

[Goofynewfie]

You could add more sugar, but you will also need nutrient to get a higher %. This requires more monitoring and a longer aging time
Another option is to ferment dry and stabilize than backsweeten to get to your desired sweetness level

 

[goteamwhatever]

If I make it dry just let it do its thing then how do I back sweeten. I've looked up a couple things about back sweetening. After I stabalize how do I sweeten? Sugar water or sweetened ever clear or what.

 

[Goofynewfie]

Just add sugar until it is to your liking

 

[goteamwhatever]

How do I get the sugar to completely dissolve. I don't wanna shake my wine do i

 

[saramc]

I was shooting for an St of 1.140 to 1.180. But as I was adding sugar the sg was barely moving.

Mayhaw jelly...love it. Wish I had some for waffles!

If adding dry sugar you will need to wait a while to take a new SG reading, stir well and make sure it is all dissolved, and do not forget to adjust for the temp calibration on your hydrometer. I even warm some of the must and dissolve the sugar in it. I do not use water since it just dilutes things. If you are able to toss granulated sugar into blender/food processor and process into superfine sugar it will dissolve almost immediately in the must.
Just remember that 1 cup sugar/gallon will raise SG by 0.020. That will help you in the future.

If you have not yet reached your target of 1.140-1.180, I would consider step feeding the must instead of stressing the yeast with a high gravity must. For example: start with an OG of 1.080-1.090'ish and when the SG has dropped by 1/3 you dose with nutrients, see staggered nutrient addition sticky, and add enough sugar to raise SG by another 0.030(keep track of additions and new hydro readings) and when that current SG drops by another 1/3 you stepfeed more fermentable. So your adjusted original gravity is 1.080+0.030+0.030 equal 1.140; and then repeat again if necessary. This technique is great and once you start doing this you may find you prefer this way.

Though of course, if you want a wine around 18% ACV then your OG of 1.140 is right on, and you can ferment dry, allow to clear/bulk age, then stabilize with sorbate plus k-meta and backsweeten with simple sugar syrup, or perhaps mayhaw syrup. I think you will find your jam/jelly wine clears quickly, go heavy on pectic enzyme, and may be ready to bottle in just three months, but if you can wait until six...so much better.

 

[goteamwhatever]

For pectic enzyme is it possible to use just sure jel? And what do I do with it I got three batches of banana wine going and never used any pectic enzyme.

 

[goteamwhatever]

Checked other posts and sure jel is not the same but I dopnt have any pectic enzyme. Will my mayhaw jelly wine be OK without it?

 

[goteamwhatever]

Ain't fermenting very quick aint got any yeast nutrient hopefully will kick in

 

[saramc]

goteam...suregel is pectin, do not use that, you need the enzyme that breaks that down, called pectic enzyme/pectinase. Jelly/jam is loaded with pectin. Wine may not clear without it BUT if your grocery has papaya use half of the green rind. That will do it until you buy pectinase/pectic enzyme.
Banana wine may actually clear on its own without pectic enzyme, IF you used the peel when you made it. How far into the banana are you? PEnzyme can be added at any point BUT it is typically added at start because it gives off a gas that stuns yeast, which explains waiting so many hours and why it is not typically added with k-meta up front.

In lack of nutrient, do you have a super ripe banana, skin almost all black and fruit super soft but not bruised/dark? If so, chop off tip/tail then just slice into chunks, peel intact, add water just to cover and bring to boil, reduce heat, cover and allow to cool then strain and add this banana soup. Yeast love banana soup! And no worries about banana-ey wine, you will be okay. Or, crush half a kids chewable vitamin or 1/4 adult vitamin, or even a B vitamin, or boil a tsp of bread yeast in 1/4 cup water for five minutes--cool and add. Those typically work in a pinch.
Just know that it can take up to 72 hours before you SEE active fermentation. Impacted by fruit choice, nutrients, temp, yeast, etc. If you put your ear close and hear a pop, sizzle on the surface you have fermentation.

 

[goteamwhatever]

Should I just add a clearing agent towards bottling time instead of adding pectic enzyme in the mayhaw. I did use the peel in all three bananas. They are all clearing very well. Another question, can I add sugar when I back to secondary to bring up the alcohol content?

 

[saramc]

Should I just add a clearing agent towards bottling time instead of adding pectic enzyme in the mayhaw. I did use the peel in all three bananas. They are all clearing very well. Another question, can I add sugar when I back to secondary to bring up the alcohol content?

Well, a fining agent is used for clearing while pectinase is used to break the pectin down. If you add a clearing agent, like isinglass, superkleer, gelatin, etc., closer to bottling the wine will likely clear but later it may cloud in bottle as the pectin haze returns. It will not impact the taste or anything, so completely your decision, but pectinase or related enzyme is a common additive in winemaking.
And you can introduce more sugar into the secondary to increase alcohol content. I would recommend stirring to degas the wine a bit before you add the sugar because it may form a volcano and erupt out of the carboy.

 

[goteamwhatever]

Thank you saramc for the guidance. Since I didn't put the pectinase in the beginning should I just not add it or wait till its aging or what. How long do you think I have to wait to drink it.

 

[saramc]

You can add it as soon as you get it. All jam/jelly wine I have made was being consumed as early as 3 months after it was dry. This gave it time to clear, without finings, and it was simple to degas.

 

[goteamwhatever]

What if I wanted to have a sweet jam wine. Can I just add potassium sorbate. And sweeten and still drink in three months?

 

[saramc]

What if I wanted to have a sweet jam wine. Can I just add potassium sorbate. And sweeten and still drink in three months?

After the ferment is done and wine is clear, no longer dropping sediment after you rack...yes. Stabilize with k-meta plus sorbate and backsweeten. I do it frequently with jam wine.

 

[goteamwhatever]

Cool thanks. You said I could drink how much better does jam wine get with age?

 

[saramc]

Cool thanks. You said I could drink how much better does jam wine get with age?

It ages well, and typically improves. Too subjective to say how much better it gets; plus no batch is the same, no bottle the same yet jam/jelly wine has been a consistent crowd pleaser for many who make it. I have some boysenberry from 2010 and I treasure it.