too high of OG?

[NickThoR]

I just made a batch of strawberry wine, and i checked the must and it is at about 1.115 I strained it through a paper towel (couldn't find my mesh strainer..)into the hydrometer tube so there wasn't much solid strawberry bits or anything in it, and the temp was room temp, about 72, so really its probably around 1.12 OG. ( 14-15% potential alcohol if it goes all the way dry)

Is this way to high? should i dilute it? I have red star champagne yeast in a starter right now bubbling away. From what i understand thatll eat the sugars right up. Maybe when its all said and done, dilute to non jet fuel and back sweeten a bit? any suggestions would be appreciated!!

 

[StoneArcher]

1.15 is usually my personal max. An option for strawberry wine would be to use a yeast that will peter out at 12% or so. Leaving it a tad sweet.

I am not a fan of red star champagne yeast for light flavors like strawberry, but I am sure others have had good success with it.


If you are really worried about it, grab some more berries and add water to your target OG. Kind of a cumbersome way to go about it, especially if you have the container for it set aside.

 

[StoneArcher]

After a bit of googling, maybe a 12% max yeast is a fictitious yeast in the wine category.

http://www.winemakersdepot.com/Yeast-Wine-Reference-Chart-W27.aspx

 

[Unferth]

+1 on not using Red Star. IMHO, it is a strong but bland yeast that tends to strip flavors from delicate fruits like strawberries.

I like Lalvin 71b and Vintner's Harvest CY17 for really fruity wines. Those are marketed for like 14% if I remember correctly, but that is only if you really push them. You can always backsweeten a bit, strawberry wine should be a tad sweet anyway.

 

[NickThoR]

well... I added some more water, retested and the sg was 1.1; so I threw in the red star yeast starter and we will see how it goes ( i was to impatient to go get another yeast.. i know, not a great homebrewer quality haha). its bubbling away in the fermenter now! I'll keep these yeast in mind though for the next batch of fruit wine. Hopefully this'll turn out well though, according to the link from StoneArcher, redstar is a good choice for light berries. I really had no clue, and had read somewhere to use a champagne yeast so i just grabbed the redstar at the hbs.

 

[StoneArcher]

Different Red Star is used for different wines. I was under the assumption you were using the Pasteur Champaign, I just pitched Montrachet in my plum. I like Red Star as a brand, I would be hesitant for using a champaign yeast for a delicate fruit wine is all. That being said, if it was all I had; I'd pitch it like you did.

From what I have read, champaign yeast blows all the flavor out the airlock. Hence, it's good for champaign, where you usually want a very subtle dry taste.

Will it work? Heck yeah it will. Did you maximize the flavor, probably not. But no doubt the reward of drinking your own wine will overpower the lost flavors anyway. And as they say, if you don't know what you are missing; Are you really "missing" it anyway?!

Let us know how it turns out! Take plenty of pictures too! The best way to learn is to do it again, experimenting with different yeasts and comparing. Best of luck!

Keep us posted!

 

[NickThoR]

what if i stopped fermentation early with potassium sorbate at around?
Rack to secondary at ~1.05, then sorbate at 1.02 or so to stop it from getting to dry? would this help from removing all the flavor?

 

[Honda88]

you will probably just have to back sweeten it, I wouldn't try anything desperate like that. K sorbate is for preventing reproduction of yeast cells not killing them.