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Michael L Collins

Lakemoron
Joined
Dec 8, 2019
Messages
30
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8
Location
The Village of Lakemore, Summit County, Ohio
I have a (1 Gallon) Cherry/Cranberry wine starting at 1.146 ABV and is currently (as of 12/31) at 1.048. It seems to be continuing to ferment but just barely, and it's way sweet.

When I started this, I had some left, and I wanted to make a wine with no added sugar, so I added it to a 12 oz of grape concentrate with an ABV of 1.094 and is now at 0.992 (and it kind of tastes good).

Now for the question.
I have 1.5 liters of wine at 0.992 and a gallon wine at 1.048. If I blend, then will it help with the overly sweet wine, or will it just be a waste of a strangely good (all be it too young) wine?
 
Right now, I'm going to let it sit for a couple of weeks and see what's happens. I'll do what you suggest, but with an eye on balancing the 1.5 ltr over the gallon, that's way too sweet to drink straight. Next time I'll use less sugar and back sweeten rather than try and keep it sweet from the beginning. I started an apple wine using less sugar that should go completely dry when done.

It's funny; I never liked white wine until I made it myself in a white grape and peach wine that accidentally carbonated (thank god I used swing-top bottles). It went dry within the first five days of fermentation and clear (or what I thought was clear) by week three.

One day I'll make a red that won't taste like an alcoholic popsicle or a cheap wine cooler.
 
Hi Michael - and welcome. You started a wine at a gravity of 1.146? That is a potential ABV of about 20%. No yeast is going to manage that , and if any could, a wine at 20% ABV is almost certainly going to be so out of balance (balance being how the intensity of the fruit flavors, acidity, tannins, mouthfeel (viscosity), and alcohol each enhance the other) as to just about undrinkable unless its sole purpose was to get you drunk. Most fruit can support an ABV of about 10-12%. Most fruit have enough sugar in them to make a wine of about 5-6% ABV. Wine grapes are different in that they have enough grape sugars to make a 10% wine.. Adding sugars to fruit does not add anything to the fruit flavors... and balance is everything if you are truly not looking for alcoholic popsicles or wine coolers.
 
Hi, and thank you. The juice was a mix of Cherry, Cranberry, with Apple and Pear. I watched this YouTube video suggesting more sugar, and only after I did, I found another one saying don't do that. I also realized I prefer dry wines. Right now, I'm just making this for myself in small batches trying to make something akin to a country wine. As I go, I plan on doing more, including the use of real grapes, but for now, I'm keeping this small.

The One I didn't add sugar to is the best so far (even though it needs some time to mellow). My current new project is an apple wine using tea as a tannin with less sugar and more apple (frozen apple concentrate), and the next grape, I'll use a recipe from City Steading for a wine (just not using the nasty bread yeast they do). What I really need to do is develop patients.

I think I also need a different yeast, or at least not a champagne yeast.
 
A few days ago, I heard this sound in my basement. A support jack fell. It didn't cause any trouble or damage to the house and easily fixed. However, the support struck the leg of the table, where I had placed my fermentors to get them into a darker place. Yes, in one drop, I lost all three. Now I have a wine scented and stained concrete floor and a better understanding of where to NOT put all my eggs (wines).
 
A few days ago, I heard this sound in my basement. A support jack fell. It didn't cause any trouble or damage to the house and easily fixed. However, the support struck the leg of the table, where I had placed my fermentors to get them into a darker place. Yes, in one drop, I lost all three. Now I have a wine scented and stained concrete floor and a better understanding of where to NOT put all my eggs (wines).
Ugh...that sucks. Sorry man [emoji43]
 
Disappointing start to the New Year. So sorry, but on the bright side there was no structural damage to your home. But that doesn't change the fact that you have lost a few months of wine making.
 
It was like my grandfather (the one who built the table back in the 1950s) decided to restart my little project for me by ending all my mistakes. I started today (OK Sunday) on two new attempts using my secondary fermentors as primary. This also proves to me I should buy the buckets, which will help me get into whole fruit winemaking and maybe take this a little more seriously (less alcohol more flavor).

On the other side of this, I emptied a (dark, safe, and out of the way) closet in a bedroom for my future endeavors.
 
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