# Just Peachy



## Scooter68 (Jul 14, 2017)

Log of Peach Wine I started this week. Plan to post new comments as things progress up until I start the Aging process.
*July 11, 2017* Started this years batch of Peach Wine. This year a 3 gallon batch with a follow-on batch in a few weeks. (Don't have the appropriate 5 gallon carboy and 7.5 gallon bucket. (Yet) Used the following:
23 lbs fresh peaches (Large portion of 1 bushel of Overripe and Scarred Skin Peaches discounted from the local Orchard)
11 cups Sugar (Target SG 1.100-1.110 - Ending ABV of 14.5 - 15%) Made 1.5 - 1 Simple Syrup with water
Yeast K1-V1116
1/2 tsp Wine Tannin
3 1/2 tsp Pectic Enzyme
1/4 tsp Fermaid K
1 1/2 tsp Yeast Nutrient
1/2 Can Frozen White Grape Juice Concentrate (Old Orchard Brand)
1/2 tsp Malic Acid (These amount are the totals required to reach pH 3.50 at Start
2 1/2 tsp Tartaric Acid
5 tsp Citric Acid
4 Campden Tablets (Total start volume = 4 gallons


Preperation:
De-stoned and cut up peaches and then ran them through manual Ricer (Stainless Steel Conical)
Added pectic enzyme to bucket as I 'riced' the peaches
Took the skins/remaining matter in Ricer and put them in Fruit Bag
Total volume of (Juice from Ricer 2.25 gallons without Fruit Bag)
Added Sugar as Simple Syrup (Ration 3 cups sugar to 2 cups water)
Volume after adding 7 cups of sugar (In simple syrup) 2.8 gallons
Fruit bag then added and it raised volume to 3.6 gallons

Could not get an SG reading due to pudding consistency of current mix. 

Decided to add additional water for total volume of 4 gallons (Expecting LARGE quantity Lees with this batch) Ground and added 4 campden tablet covered bucket and left overnight hoping for better luck with SG reading.
pH reading was 3.65 - Began adding small amounts of Acid starting with Malic 1/2 tsp, Tartaric 1 1/2 tsp and Citric 3 1/2 tsp. pH meter reading was now 3.45 
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*July 12, 2017 * 10:00 AM Next morning Used large Wine Thief to extract sample - Had to cover top of Wine Thief to get it past a "Pudding Layer" or peach whipped cream layer that now exists after the tip of the thief was about half way down the bucket I uncovered the top. Repeated this until I had enough for a reading. SG Reading 1.102 
PH had climbed to 3.65 so I added another 1 tsp Tartaric and 1 1/2 tsp Citric Acids - Adjusted pH was now 3.50.

Prepped Yeast Starter with:
Pinch (One fourth of an 1/8 tsp measure) Fermaid K 
1/8 tsp Yeast Nutrient
3 oz very warm water
1oz of must
1 packet of K1-V1116
Stirred, covered container and allowed to set for 8 hours.

6:00 PM Pitched yeast Stirred
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*July 13, 2017 *3:00PM checked on wine, cap of thick peach 'pudding' has a couple of places where a white foam is bubbling through. Calling that positive signs of active fermentation. Took SG reading and it read out at 1.090. Did not check pH.

7:00PM checked on progress, white foam continues to bubble through the upper thick layer of peach pulp (Pudding consistency) Stirred batch and put a oversize tray under the bucket in the even of foam over flow.

Considered scooping off that pudding like layer at the top of the bucket. Did a dip with a medium strainer - the 'pudding' has way too much substance to it for discard. Very sweet and very peachy. Hopefully the foaming will be restrained enough stay inside the bucket. Perhaps the cloth fasten firmly around the top of the bucket with keep thing in the bucket.
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Next update Friday morning July 14

This is the 4 th batch of peach wine for me the first 2 were 1 gallon batches and very light on the palette. The third was a complete success and I am hoping to duplicate or top that batch. For this batch I used 1/2 can of white grape juice to add body and as a sweetening addition to the sugar. (This was part of one of Jack Kellers receipes. Hope the grape doesn't over power the peach.


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## bkisel (Jul 14, 2017)

Don't think I'd worry about 1/2 can over powering the peaches. I used 2 cans, along with brown sugar and honey, to back sweeten my peach batch (24 lbs. for 6 gallons) and plenty of peach flavor and aroma remained. I think adding a 1/2 can grape concentrate to a 4 gallon batch at fermentation would have much less effect than what it would have at back sweetening.

BTW, the peach wine has become my wife's favorite wine.


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## Scooter68 (Jul 14, 2017)

Tis now my favorite after batch 3. Sitting there smelling the aroma of fresh peaches before even engaging the taste buds is fantastic. 

My favs in order are Peach, Blackberry (With that white grape additive), Blueberry, Black Current, and Black Raspberry. Believe that's all I'll spend my time in in the future.

As to the grape effect - I hope you are correct - at present I can definitely make out the grape influence in taste. Since it is only starting day 3 of fermentation I hope that impact will lighten. Now I have to go see if my bucket overfloweth with foam and pulp. 


*One last question.* Last night I used one of the remaining peaches sliced up onto some vanilla ice cream. A food fantasy come true. Now the question is could a hint that same flavor be imparted to a peach wine with the addition of vanilla? (Vanilla bean?)


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## Scooter68 (Jul 14, 2017)

*Progress Report *- Friday July 14, 2017 9:30 AM SG reading 1.038 WOW !! 

Had to check twice then I wondered about my original starting reading. 

Self-doubting starts. 

Reviewed what I did and how many times I did the initial SG reading. High Confidence in that reading and this on . So Once last check point - Sample the must. OH YES! It is definitely and Alcohol containing beverage.

*UPDATE - 6:00PM* SG now 1.018 pH 3.25 Much fewer solids in the must - still quite cloudy but sediment is starting to fall and except a moderate layer of foam and floating pulp things are looking much better. Could be racked to a carboy at these numbers but I'll wait another day at least to give the pulp and skins more chance to break down and release all flavor. Sampled and quite good for so early on. ABV to the taste seems a little lower than expected but it's not finished fermenting yet and the solids in the liquid is likely to be masking the alcohol content which by the numbers should currently be at 11.3%


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## Scooter68 (Jul 15, 2017)

The Fruit, the tools and the progress


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## Scooter68 (Jul 16, 2017)

Update Sunday July 16. SG at .0997 Racked to 3 gal. Carboy Plus 1/2 gallon carboy and 2 16oz bottles. All under Airlock. Hoping that the additional bottles will eliminate or reduce the amount of topping off needed. 

QUESTION to the more experienced - When I rack and need to top off - Would it be safe to use a bottle of the first peach wine I made. It has sorbate but hopefully the quantity would be low enough not effect this wine's tast. That's a topping off AFTER fermentation is completely finished at the beginning or during aging as needed. My first batch was on the weak side with only 4 1/2lbs of peaches for a gallon but... it is a peach wine.


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## Johnd (Jul 16, 2017)

If you top with your previous wine, assuming it has sugar in it (that's why you used sorbate), that sugar could ferment if you've not already sorbated your new wine. Other than that, no worries, a little topping shouldn't cause any substantial flavor change.


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## Scooter68 (Jul 16, 2017)

Thanks - the bottle/batch was back-sweetened to 1.004 so I need to be prepared for a Little additional fermentation if the new wine hasn't yet been sorbated when I top off. Shouold not be an issue. This new batch will be aging at least 9-12 months before being bottled. A little restart of fermentation shouldn't pose a big issue under airlock. Hoping not to have to use it but....


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## Larryh86GT (Jul 17, 2017)

Scooter68 said:


> Tis now my favorite after batch 3. Sitting there smelling the aroma of fresh peaches before even engaging the taste buds is fantastic.
> 
> My favs in order are Peach, Blackberry (With that white grape additive), Blueberry, Black Current, and Black Raspberry. Believe that's all I'll spend my time in in the future.
> 
> ...



Your list of favorites is similar to mine:
Blackberry, peach, pear, plum, raspberry.

Larry


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## Scooter68 (Jul 17, 2017)

Larryh86GT  - I like plum wine but unfortunately our plum trees have only produced a significant number plums once and that was before I started making wine. So someday....maybe their I'll have a plum wine in the making


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## spaniel (Jul 20, 2017)

Regarding addition of white grapes overpowering, I would not be concerned unless you seriously dilute the peaches. My Ontario grapes ripen with my peaches so I used them, perhaps a gallom of grapes in the 7gal primary.

Regardin pounds per gallon peaches, the only thing I add to the peaches is the crushed grapes. I don't add ANY water. Some fruits (raspberry, elderberry) need it, but not peaches.


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## Scooter68 (Jul 20, 2017)

spaniel said:


> Regarding addition of white grapes overpowering, I would not be concerned unless you seriously dilute the peaches. My Ontario grapes ripen with my peaches so I used them, perhaps a gallom of grapes in the 7gal primary.
> 
> Regardin pounds per gallon peaches, the only thing I add to the peaches is the crushed grapes. I don't add ANY water. Some fruits (raspberry, elderberry) need it, but not peaches.



How many pounds of peaches do you use per gallon?


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## Boatboy24 (Jul 21, 2017)

Scooter68 said:


> How many pounds of peaches do you use per gallon?



Hard to say, as the amount of juice they yield can vary greatly; based on variety, ripeness, whether you're supplementing with grape juice, etc. A wide range, in my limited experience, but anywhere from 6-12 pounds.


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## Scooter68 (Jul 21, 2017)

Boatboy24 said:


> Hard to say, as the amount of juice they yield can vary greatly; based on variety, ripeness, whether you're supplementing with grape juice, etc. A wide range, in my limited experience, but anywhere from 6-12 pounds.



Thank you Boatboy - I have used between 6-7 pounds per gallon and yes - I find that I need water to thin down the pulp which is so thick that a hydrometer will not work in the 'soup.' Blind comments without a certain knowledge of the water content of fruits is unreliable. Water content can vary wildly even within a single season. My peaches run through the ricer produced an awesome puree but the water content was low. In the end I added about a gallon of water to reach the volume I needed to get a 3 gallon end volume of wine.

Right now my 3 gallon carboy that just finished fermenting contains at least a gallon of lees. I have a have gallon carboy and 2 x 16 oz jars all under airlock but I still expect to need some additional topping off. Peaches product massive amount of lees. I processed my peaches through a ricer which rendered an excellent starting point assuring the best extraction of the flavors and aroma from the peaches. I used a white grape concentrate which contains minimum water so no water gain was experience with that unlike using actual grapes.

I will see if I can 'filter' out the lees to recapture liquid but the last time around it was a time intensive process and I hate exposing the wine to the air that much while I run it through a strainer. Actual paper Filters would never work as they would clog in about 5 seconds. What I've done before is to siphon off the clearest liquid until I get to the course lees. Then those I run through a fine strainer. The bag of fruit skins was removed of course when I racked into the carboy. That bag had very little pulp, it was mostly skins from the peaches. The result is at least one or two extra rackings to get rid of the majority of the lees. The resulting wine though - VERY well worth it.

The process started with a 4 gallon volume in the fermentation bucket. My goal is 3 gallons of wine. Additional water should not be an issue. The peaches were ripe but not loaded with juice we are already in high temp time here so water content in fruit drops rapidly now. The few remaining blueberries I'm picking are very firm and loaded with flavor, just not as much water as they had 6 weeks ago.

I'll try to take some photos this time through with pre-racking conditions and the straining process. Probably should stitch together a muslin bag to help with the final straining.


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## geek (Jul 21, 2017)

Hmmmmm, I think I may be making a batch of peach wine this year. 
Unlike last year, the peach crop this year is good in CT. Last year it just got destroyed with an early freeze....


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## Boatboy24 (Jul 21, 2017)

On my previous batches, I've been close to 8lbs per gallon and was still adding liquid. When I did my first one, @Julie recommended 4 cans of Welches White Grape/Peach to a gallon of water. That seems to work, though I've not seen the white grape/peach concentrate (or even plain white grape) at the stores in a long time. 

Freezing first, then thawing prior to fermentation seems to help w/ liquid extraction.


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## geek (Jul 21, 2017)

I never make a fruit wine without freezing the fruit first.

Jim, I haven't seen any white grape with peach concentrate, just white grape.


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## Boatboy24 (Jul 21, 2017)

geek said:


> I never make a fruit wine without freezing the fruit first.
> 
> Jim, I haven't seen any white grape with peach concentrate, just white grape.



http://www.welchs.com/products/conc...00-juice-white-grape-peach-frozen-concentrate


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## Scooter68 (Jul 21, 2017)

I've also resorted to 'coloring' my peach wine with either a a few sweet cherries (about 5-10 per gallon) or as I did this time- about an oz of Tart Cherry Concentrate. The change is not that noticable until the wine completely clears and you can compare with a finished batch without the coloring. The colored is definitely a more peach color rather than straw colored and there is no noticeable taste change from that little bit of Cherry.

Oh I agree Geek, I'm going to start another batch of peach here shortly - just two gallons this time but with a vanilla bean additive. (Got the idea when I had some extra peaches on vanilla ice cream last week.) Anyone who doesn't understand that - take a fresh, especially an soppy, juicy over-ripe peach and cut it up on some fresh Vanilla Bean ice cream. Good thing I'm trying to lose weight or I would have had another serving.

Just smelling a glass of peach wine is a reward in itself. Peach wine has risen to the top of my short list of favorites. It just beat out Black Currant, Blueberry, an Blackberry. Those last three are in a 3-way tie for 2nd place.


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## spaniel (Jul 21, 2017)

Scooter68 said:


> How many pounds of peaches do you use per gallon?



I have no idea. As I said I don't add any water, so I have no ratio to worry about. Using ripe peaches I've never had an issue with lack of water.

Yes, the pulp makes using the hydrometer hard but I just deal with it. Once fermentation starts they fall apart into thing but fiber (I use pectic enzyme as well). I let the peaches sit on the enzyme overnight to start releasing their sugar and water before I try to measure SG.


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## geek (Jul 21, 2017)

Boatboy24 said:


> http://www.welchs.com/products/conc...00-juice-white-grape-peach-frozen-concentrate




I should've said I've never seen this at any local supermarket [emoji4]


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## Scooter68 (Jul 22, 2017)

*July 20 -* Tested SG - .993 There has also been no airlock activity for the last 3-4 days. Added Campden tablets (Crushed & Dissolved) total for 3 for 3 3/4 gallons of must.
*July 21* - Racked last night. Strained the lees with fine stainless steel strainer. That left me with enough to fill the 3 gallon carboy and two smaller bottles. Also added bentonite 2 1/2 tsp dissolved in 1 1/2 cups hot water.
Straining did and excellent job or removing all the course lees leaving a cloudy liquid with no visible particles. 
Expect to rack again in 1-3 weeks depending on extent of clearing. No water needed for this racking as the straining provided enough to 'top off' and fill a 20 oz and 16 oz bottle. (Those are also under airlock as well)
*July 22* AM Observation. While doing some clean up in the "Cellar" I was able to see that All 3 containers are clearly showing a clear layer in the top 1-2 inches.


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## geek (Jul 22, 2017)

How much are you guys paying for peach this year, per pound?


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## Scooter68 (Jul 22, 2017)

I paid $33.00 for a bushel of Number 2 peaches. (Scarred & Overripe) A lot of the scarred ones were not fully ripe but they did ripe fully in less than 4 days inside on our counter. That's in NW Arkansas at a Peach Growers Orchard stand. Weight was 52 pounds before removing stones and a few bad spots.


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## geek (Jul 23, 2017)

The pick your own at Lyman Orchards is $1.75/lb for peaches but I saw the price at Costco I think for $1.79/lb.
So the Costco buy sounds more reasonable considering their fruit is top quality.
The only thing is that the peach didn't really smell much at all, the nectarine had a better aroma. Basically the peach had no aroma that I can remember.


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## Boatboy24 (Jul 23, 2017)

geek said:


> The pick your own at Lyman Orchards is $1.75/lb for peaches but I saw the price at Costco I think for $1.79/lb.
> So the Costco buy sounds more reasonable considering their fruit is top quality.
> The only thing is that the peach didn't really smell much at all, the nectarine had a better aroma. Basically the peach had no aroma that I can remember.



Last time I was in Costco, the peach aroma smacked you right in the face. I practically floated back to the produce section.


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## Scooter68 (Jul 23, 2017)

Are the peaches at costco loose, you select the ones you want, or are they pre-packaged? If they are pre-packaged that would be a no go for me. I want to select the peaches I want especially if I'm paying nearly $100.00 per bushel. (The two half-bushels I bought at the Peach Orchard's stand were $16.50 each - the weight of those was 26 lbs. per half-bushel *At 1.79/pound you would be paying $93,08 for 52 lbs of peaches. They better be perfect.*


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## geek (Jul 23, 2017)

The ones at Costco come in an open box.


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## Scooter68 (Jul 23, 2017)

Still expensive - Wow! Even the ones I bought last year (Also 'Overripe") cost me $15.00 for 36 lbs. Just shows what the weather has done to costs for fruit and especially peaches this year


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## geek (Jul 24, 2017)

Peach hasn't been too cheap up here as far as I remember, may be a good idea for me to wait longer and when the peaches are falling off the trees then the orchard decides to sell them cheap...a bit overripe is good for me (not damaged) since the aroma may be much better.


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## Scooter68 (Jul 24, 2017)

I use even the 'bruised' peaches. Unless it has mold on it a physical bruise just means a very ripe part was bumped too hard. For me the softer the better. Here in NW Arkansas the only thing I look out for to avoid are imported peaches since they are always picked WAY too early so that they can survive shipping, Even the very firm/hard peaches from the local market are better since I can put them on the kitchen counter and they are fully ripe in 2-4 days.

But I understand, location - where your peaches have to come from makes all the difference. Plus north east produce seems to be higher, 'because they can' get away with charging those higher prices.


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## beckerkorn (Sep 17, 2017)

Hi everyone! It's my first time making peach wine (or ANY kind of wine!) and I am just at the point where I've siphoned it from my primary fermenter (bucket) to a carboy. Problem is, at this stage (it's only been fermenting a week, in the bucket) it tastes very very boozy. Like a very strong sake. Is it supposed to taste this strong before going into the carboy? Thanks!!


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## sour_grapes (Sep 17, 2017)

beckerkorn said:


> Hi everyone! It's my first time making peach wine (or ANY kind of wine!) and I am just at the point where I've siphoned it from my primary fermenter (bucket) to a carboy. Problem is, at this stage (it's only been fermenting a week, in the bucket) it tastes very very boozy. Like a very strong sake. Is it supposed to taste this strong before going into the carboy? Thanks!!



Can you tell what you put into your fermenter? Just peaches? Do you have a hydrometer?


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## beckerkorn (Sep 17, 2017)

sour_grapes said:


> Can you tell what you put into your fermenter? Just peaches? Do you have a hydrometer?





Sure! I followed this recipe basically to the letter, except i added about 1/2 tsp pectic acid: https://delishably.com/beverages/How-to-Make-Peach-Wine-A-Simple-Peach-Wine-Recipe

Basically (to save you time), I added sugar water (1 lb. sugar / 1/2 gal water) to peach juice that I squeezed from a nylon sack, then I added the pectic acid, then I added wine yeast that had been activated in orange juice. The recipe called for 1 T. yeast to make a gallon of wine and that was about 1 2/3 packets of yeast. I'm worried I added too much yeast.

My primary fermenter was just a bucket wrapped in plastic wrap with the lid kind of half-closed on top. I left the sack of peach pulp in it while it fermented for one week.

I don't have a hydrometer - I'm just beginning and a hydrometer is something I plan to invest in if I decide I will enjoy doing this often.

Thanks!!


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## sour_grapes (Sep 17, 2017)

It should be okay. The sugar water should have had a starting specific gravity of about 1.080 (according to FermCalc). The peaches would only dilute this, so the max alcohol you could have is about 10%. I don't think there is any way this brew is actually very boozy, even if it tastes like it.

My suspicion is the boozy taste you perceive is due to two factors. This recipe is very light on fruit. You are basically making a sugar wash -- that is, fermenting straight sugar. There is little other elements to mask the raw alcohol. To boot, the yeast likely had poor nutrients, and so may have created off-flavors and fusel alcohols. (All of this is just suspicion.) The other factor is that it is YOUNG. Young wine tastes harsh.

Oh, and there are no concerns to be had regarding adding too much yeast. The extra yeast cannot make more alcohol without extra sugar.


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## beckerkorn (Sep 17, 2017)

Thanks so much for your detailed answer! So here's what I am learning: if I were to try this again, I might try four pounds of peaches (instead of three) to increase the complexity of the wine and give the yeast more nutrients. I also might move it to the carboy after only five days instead of seven. And I also might use raw sugar instead of refined.

Let me know if my intuition is off. 

How long should it be until I start to see bubbling in the airlock? I racked it around 2pm today and then re-racked it at 5pm (I screwed up and there was way too much sediment in my carboy the first time around). It's now almost 8:30pm where I live. Also, on the advice of someone on another forum, I topped it up with more sugar water. But it's not bubbling at all. What does that mean?

Thanks [emoji41][emoji898][emoji527]


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## Scooter68 (Sep 18, 2017)

Normally by the time you rack to a carboy from a primary container the fermentation is almost done From 1.010 to .990 you are only going to see an increase of about 2 1/2 % of alcohol.


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## beckerkorn (Sep 19, 2017)

Scooter68 said:


> Normally by the time you rack to a carboy from a primary container the fermentation is almost done From 1.010 to .990 you are only going to see an increase of about 2 1/2 % of alcohol.





Interesting. I think I'm going to have to get a hydrometer!

And by the way, when I woke up this morning there was fizzing action happening and a little bubble came up out of the airlock every couple seconds. So I don't have a stuck ferment (phew!).


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## Scooter68 (Sep 19, 2017)

beckerkorn said:


> Sure! I followed this recipe basically to the letter, except i added about 1/2 tsp pectic acid: https://delishably.com/beverages/How-to-Make-Peach-Wine-A-Simple-Peach-Wine-Recipe




JUST READ that recipe. I can't imagine that the person who published that recipe has a much real experience making wine. 
1) 3 pounds for a gallon of wine is way way too little fruit.
2) The suggestion that you DON'T want to use over-ripe fruit is strainge. Under-ripe peaches are going to be very 'green tasting' and have very little true peach flavor. They will also have a very low sugar content. 

I would always use peaches that are on the very of going bad. As long as there isn't any mold or off taste to the fruit - an over-ripe soft peach is GREAT. I use at least 6 lbs of peaches per gallon and that's after pits and stems are removed.

The wine making process is all about learning. Whatever the outcome of this batch - learn and improve with the next batch. 

And by the way, right about now Apples should really be coming into fruit stands OR you can find raw, unfiltered Apple cider/juice to make an excellent apple wine. Add no water except what you use to dissolve sugar. (Making simple syrup - use a 2-1 sugar-water mix) I broke down and bought an auger juicer this year for our apples (In our area they ripen about first week of August) That auger juicer turns out some awesome apple juice that is ready to go directly into a fermentation bucket. ()With apples I don't see the need for the skins.)

In any case keep us posted and YES, get a hydrometer ASAP. In fact order two. (Chances of breaking one an the most inoportune time are high.) The wine making process is all about knowing when to rack, filter etc. and it's never dictated by a calendar but by the hydrometer reading.


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## iridium (Sep 27, 2017)

Quick newbie question. I have some peaches that I would like to turn into wine. However I have not done a whole fruit wine before. Should I try a dragons blood first or just jump in?
Thank you for posting your log


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## Scooter68 (Sep 28, 2017)

You can start out with a peach wine. How many pounds of peaches do you have? I would recommend at LEAST 6 pounds per gallon. Also remember that peaches will throw a lot of lees. That means you need to start fermentation with at least 1/4 gallon of additional volume for every gallon of finished wine. That would mean that a gallon of really peach good wine should be about 7 pounds of peaches. Prep the peaches by de-stoning them cut them up fairly thin and then freeze for at least a couple of days. Let them thaw and them mash them well before putting into a mesh bag. I normally make a simple syrup solution (2 cups sugar to 1 cup hot water) use that to raise the SG. You could drop that to a 1:1 ratio on the simple syrup and that way you can be adding water while you raise the SG. DON'T forget your Pectic enzyme as soon as you thaw and mash the peaches - in fact go heavy on it for peaches.

Whole fruit wines aren't hard. They are the only ones I make really. 

By the way a peach wine with an ABV of 13% makes a very nice wine.


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## iridium (Sep 28, 2017)

I have six pounds de-stones in the freezer. I have pectin enzyme as well. I will take your advice and just go for it. I have pectin enzyme and I think I will use EC 1118 yeast for the yeast. Sounds like I need yeast nutrient as well. I have campden tablets so after peaches are thawed will add enzyme and tablets and sugar. Sounds like I should wait a day to let it settle to get SG reading. I will start with a gallon batch. It may be weaker but will shoot for 1.5 gallons in primary to account for lees at racking.


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## Scooter68 (Sep 28, 2017)

Peaches tend to get a bit 'thick' so I'd recommend adding the pectic enzyme to the thawing peaches ASAP. Maybe let them sit overnight as they warm up to room temp with the enzyme. ( Perhaps mix the pectic enzyme in 1/4 cup water and pour over the thawing peaches to get a quick start.) Then add 1 campden tab and everything else the next day except the yeast. Then on the 3rd day pitch the yeast. 

Oh and don't be surprised if you find it very tough to get an SG reading. Peaches have a tendency to make a very thick must initially. (See other thread on "NEED HELP! Very strange issue...")


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## iridium (Oct 2, 2017)

I started the peach wine. I used 6 pounds of peaches and thawed them with pectin enzyme. Then I added two campden tablets after they were thawed. I squeezed the fruit. I got pretty good clear juice just not a lot. I had some leftover peach juice from commercial canned peaches so I made that into a syrup to get volume and SG up to 1.104. Added 3.5 tsp of acid blend to get acid to jus under 3.6. Added .25 tsp each fermaid-k and nutrient when I hydrated the yeast. Pitched the yeast four hours later. So far appear to have fermentation started once yeast got up to 70 F. I had the fermenter in a cold spot and moved it and covered with towels. 

Very excited about this so thank you for all the information and advice.


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## iridium (Oct 8, 2017)

Just racked my peach wine to carboy. Ended up getting a lot of lees in the wine as the picture indicates. I would think that I rack off the lees as soon as everything has settled the wait a bit to add clearing agents. Is that a good plan or should I add clearing agents now before I rack to get even more settlement at the beginning. Ending SG was .998 so pretty close to dry. I had trouble racking which resulted in a lot of agitation and probably some degassing as well.


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## Scooter68 (Oct 8, 2017)

Get it off the GROSS lees (Common with peach wine from fruit) and you can add clearing agents during the racking. When lees were "excessive" I've resorted to a stainless steel strainer to capture the gross stuff while racking from the primary container into the carboy. Toward the bottom of the bucket I run the must through the strainer. When the strainer is full of the heavy lees I swirl the lees around in the strainer and then toss out the captured lees into an empty bucket - then repeat. Key is to work quickly to avoid too much exposure in the process. I'm able to decrease the loss of volume quite a bit that way. Not necessarily the cleanest process but since the must is still fermenting there is still some CO2 coming off to protect the must in the carboy until I get it filled up. With a 3 gallon batch of peach wine I know to start with at least 3 1/2 gallons due to the lees.

Since your fermentation is completed you may want to avoid using the strainer and instead split your batch into smaller carboys to avoid having a lot of head space. Perhaps setting aside the gross lees until the racking process is completed and then try a quick run through the strainer and put that into a smaller carboy (1/2 gallon?) That way you should be able to recover enough for topping off after the next racking.

All of this reminds me it's about time to do another racking of the batch that started this thread as well as two smaller batches of peach wine I started since then (1 gallon Peach/Vanilla & 1 gallon to blend with the Peach/Vanilla)


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## iridium (Oct 9, 2017)

How did the peach vanilla turn out? I also really enjoy peaches over vanilla ice cream on a warm summer day.

Late last night I saw that the peach wine was not done fermenting because it looked like the airlock had been popped off. I racked into clean carboy and did the straining like you recommended. Did well. Tonight I was going to rack again and add chitosan and k-meta. I was planning on ripping off with a Riesling which is a sweet wine. Since I am bulk aging for a couple of months should I be worried about restarting fermentation such that I add the sorbate at this time as well?

The taste was very alcoholic and very little peach taste. Hoping that improves with time because when I tasted at a higher SG the peach came through very nicely.

Thank you for all of your help and advice.


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## Scooter68 (Oct 9, 2017)

Not sure what might have caused an airlock to pop off - That's sounds more like it wasn't fully on?? maybe?? Don't forget of course that there is still a certain amount of CO2 to be out-gassed over time so the airlock needs to be there to permit that.
As to a restart of fermentation - Unless you add a ferment-able sugar source - once the SG is below 1.000 there isn't much more to ferment. BUT yes sorbate will normally help stop that. I don't thing that you need that right now. Just stick with the K-Meta additions protocol as you age the wine. THEN about a week before back-sweetening (Which should help bring back some of the peach flavor) add the last dose of K-meta and the sorbate. Wait about a week, back-sweeten, then wait one more week before bottling. Again do those last steps once you are at the end of the aging cycle. ( I am trying to stick to aging my wines between 10-12 months before bottling.)

The Peach Vanilla is due for a racking soon A(Next week or so) and I'll give it a taste then.


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## iridium (Oct 9, 2017)

Thank you. I found a thread on blueberry wine where you gave really good detailed info on the process to use before bottling. I think at this point I am still not clear but will add k-meta and clarifier and wait several months. Next up will likely be blackberry and there is a lot of good info on how to make that wine!


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