Making Cheap Lemon Wine, can I pile on the sugar?

[Evan_]

Day 1
902g dextrose
3903g water
145g lemon juice
2 teaspoons lemon extract
yeast nutrient
50g yeast starter (montrachet)

Day 2
no signs of fermentation
Made more yeast starter the good way with molasses with more montrachet and added the brew to the starter 1 tablespoon every 10 minutes. Increased to adding 1/2 cup every so often once it started to get established. When it was bed time I put all the starter I made into the bucket and hoped for the best.

Day 3
Fermentation is slow and steady.

Day 4
About the same as yesterday but a little more airlock activity.
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Update (edit):
Added 375g dextrose.
Day 5
Added 372g dextrose.
Day 6
Added 371g dextrose
Day 7
Added 366g dextrose

The brew started at 18 brix and montrachet will ferment all that out. I'm thinking I want to add another 1.23 kilo of dextrose so it turns out sweet but I don't want to mess anything up. Right now it's doing great. I rather add the extra dextrose now than the end because I think it ends up tasting better that way.

So how should I go about adding the sugar? A cup a day? I'll note that the brew is in a bucket so I don't have to worry about the CO2 coming out of solution too fast and getting bottlenecked so don't bother suggesting I dissolve the sugar before hand.

If I add too much sugar at this point will it get stuck?

edit: I just realized I started at 18 brix and I meant to start at 22 so I'll be adding 254g dextrose today not included in the 1.23 kilo

 

[Yooper]

The brew started at 22 brix and montrachet will ferment all that out. I'm thinking I want to add another kilo of dextrose so it turns out sweet but I don't want to mess anything up. Right now it's doing great. I rather add the extra dextrose now than the end because I think it ends up tasting better that way.

So how should I go about adding the sugar? A cup a day? I'll note that the brew is in a bucket so I don't have to worry about the CO2 coming out of solution too fast and getting bottlenecked so don't bother suggesting I dissolve the sugar before hand.

If I add too much sugar at this point will it get stuck?

Adding sugar in increments is generally done to "push" the alcohol limit of the yeast, and it works well. In other words, if you do this, you'll make very hot rocket fuel that will end up sweet. Once you overwhelm the wine with acohol, there will be some sweetness. But it probably won't be drinkable for years.

 

[Evan_]

Adding sugar in increments is generally done to "push" the alcohol limit of the yeast, and it works well. In other words, if you do this, you'll make very hot rocket fuel that will end up sweet. Once you overwhelm the wine with acohol, there will be some sweetness. But it probably won't be drinkable for years.

Thank you for your reply. It indicates adding the sugar will not stuck the fermentation. What do you mean by rocket fuel? Montrachet tops out at 15% and won't it be drinkable if it is sweet?

 

[grrickar]

Rocket fuel = too much alcohol to where the drink is not pleasant. Skeeter Pee usually finishes around 10%, and even at that it is very drinkable and not too 'hot'. If you go beyond that it may not be pleasant to drink (hence the rocket fuel reference)

 

[Yooper]

Thank you for your reply. It indicates adding the sugar will not stuck the fermentation. What do you mean by rocket fuel? Montrachet tops out at 15% and won't it be drinkable if it is sweet?

But it doesn't reliably top at at 15%- that's more of an average. It can go to 17% if it is "pushed" the way you describe, but incrementally adding sugar.

It will be "hot" and burn like fire- think of something like a shot of whiskey, until the alcohol ages a bit.

 

[Evan_]

I updated the post with the sugar I added.

The other night after smelling it I could tell there was plenty of alcohol in it to drink. The fermentation has really slowed down and there is no airlock activity but when I put my ear right on the bucket I could still hear some bubbles and fizzing. I filled a bottle half way to see if it would turn into a bottle bomb or not. It did become pressurized by the next morning but only a little. I tried a glass that night and the experience went like this

It smelled really strong. It really reminds me of the first wine I ever made wine (bread yeast and sugar water with a balloon for the airlock , no sanitizer), but it is quite a bit better. It tastes sweet and can be swallowed okay. I hadn't drank in a fortnight so the intoxication effects were quickly noticeable. I think the dextrose has done a much better job than table sugar would have. It has a powdered sugar taste. It leaves a sting in my throat like a beverage with artificial sweetener would.

Overall I would rate it "Not perfect but worth it."
After all making this wine has been really inexpensive, a good choice for somebody as broke as I am .

 

[HBngNOK]

You're working awfully hard to make Skeeter Pee.