Kilgore__Trout
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- Joined
- Sep 11, 2014
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Hi, everyone . . .
I'm new to the forum and I guess I'm what you'd call an intermediate level home brewer. I've made many batches of beer and wine over the years, but I still have plenty to learn and there are still things that happen when I brew that leave me puzzled from time to time.
Right now I'm working on a batch of pear wine. Last week we crushed and squeezed enough pears to start about a 5-1/2 batch. It had been three years since I'd last made pear wine, but I still remembered the essentials. I added tannin, yeast nutrient, acid blend, and pectic enzyme to the must, and then it was time to add sugar. I was sure I needed no less than six pounds, so I added that much and went to clean and sanitize my hydrometer.
That's when I broke my hydrometer.
Not wanting to mess around anymore (since that had been about the fourth time I'd broken a hydrometer), I ordered a new refractometer and figured the six pounds of sugar I added was "about right," but I would make adjustments as needed. I kept a sample of the must so I could test it for OG when the new refractometer came.
When it came, I checked the OG and it was 1.067. I thought "oh, no," because, assuming a FG of roughly 1.005, my wine would clock in at about 8% abv. Thing is, the vigorous initial fermentation had already subsided. I wasn't too bothered, though, because I figured there'd be enough viable yeast to get fermentation properly started up again.
So here's what I did:
I took a gravity reading of the must as it was. It came in at about 1.027. I don't remember precisely, but I think that indicated an abv of about five or so percent. My goal is 12-13. I did a little calculating, but generally speaking I shot from the hip, and figured that if I brought the gravity up to somewhere around 1.065, it would result in something close to my goal once fermentation was complete.
I added six more pounds of corn sugar to do this. That was yesterday. Today, fermentation is active, but it's far from vigorous. I'm not sure what to make of that. So here's what I'd like to ask you:
1) Should I expect fermentation to continue at this slow pace, or did I do something wrong or miss a step? (Or, conversely, is there something I can/should do to invigorate it?)
2) Just how bad were my assumptions when I tried to recover my intended abv? Is it likely that my remedy will at least get me into the ballpark when fermentation is done?
Thanks for taking the time to read this. I appreciate any pearls of wisdom the more experienced among you might share.
Thanks!
KT
I'm new to the forum and I guess I'm what you'd call an intermediate level home brewer. I've made many batches of beer and wine over the years, but I still have plenty to learn and there are still things that happen when I brew that leave me puzzled from time to time.
Right now I'm working on a batch of pear wine. Last week we crushed and squeezed enough pears to start about a 5-1/2 batch. It had been three years since I'd last made pear wine, but I still remembered the essentials. I added tannin, yeast nutrient, acid blend, and pectic enzyme to the must, and then it was time to add sugar. I was sure I needed no less than six pounds, so I added that much and went to clean and sanitize my hydrometer.
That's when I broke my hydrometer.
Not wanting to mess around anymore (since that had been about the fourth time I'd broken a hydrometer), I ordered a new refractometer and figured the six pounds of sugar I added was "about right," but I would make adjustments as needed. I kept a sample of the must so I could test it for OG when the new refractometer came.
When it came, I checked the OG and it was 1.067. I thought "oh, no," because, assuming a FG of roughly 1.005, my wine would clock in at about 8% abv. Thing is, the vigorous initial fermentation had already subsided. I wasn't too bothered, though, because I figured there'd be enough viable yeast to get fermentation properly started up again.
So here's what I did:
I took a gravity reading of the must as it was. It came in at about 1.027. I don't remember precisely, but I think that indicated an abv of about five or so percent. My goal is 12-13. I did a little calculating, but generally speaking I shot from the hip, and figured that if I brought the gravity up to somewhere around 1.065, it would result in something close to my goal once fermentation was complete.
I added six more pounds of corn sugar to do this. That was yesterday. Today, fermentation is active, but it's far from vigorous. I'm not sure what to make of that. So here's what I'd like to ask you:
1) Should I expect fermentation to continue at this slow pace, or did I do something wrong or miss a step? (Or, conversely, is there something I can/should do to invigorate it?)
2) Just how bad were my assumptions when I tried to recover my intended abv? Is it likely that my remedy will at least get me into the ballpark when fermentation is done?
Thanks for taking the time to read this. I appreciate any pearls of wisdom the more experienced among you might share.
Thanks!
KT
