Help!!

[BernardSmith]

Anyone here with experience with wines from jam?
I am making 1 gallon of apricot wine from jam. I bought 4 jars of jam (18 ozs each). The label states that that there are 25 servings with 10 gms of sugar per serving. That means there is 250 gms of sugar (includes high fructose corn sugar) in each jar. And that means that there is a total of 1000 gms of sugar altogether. The volume of each jar is 1.5 pints. (that is 6 pints total) If I add 2 pints of water I have 1 gallon. The 1000 gms of sugar should result in a nominal SG of 1.100 (50 gms = .005 so 20 X .005 = .100), but when I measure the SG with my hydrometer I get a reading of 1.140. I had added pectic enzyme and used warm water to bring the total to 1 gallon. What is causing this excessive reading? Is it the fruit solids and the pectin that may be creating additional buoyancy or is it perhaps that high fructose sugars result in a greater SG than normal fructose and sucrose? Or is there something else going on here? What am I missing?

 

[DoctorCAD]

SG measures EVERYTHING in the solution, not just sugar. If your math is correct, the extra .04 is thickening agents, atrifical coloring, starches etc.

 

[BernardSmith]

SG measures EVERYTHING in the solution, not just sugar. If your math is correct, the extra .04 is thickening agents, atrifical coloring, starches etc.

Thanks, DoctorCad. That suggests that if my assumptions are reasonable (about the relationship between amount of sugar and SG) and my arithmetic is OK then I should aim at diluting the must so that by calculation rather than by measurement I have a must with an SG of 1.085. Would that be about 15 percent more water (or about 600 CCs? - assuming about 4000 CCs to a gallon)

 

[seth8530]

My calculations also put you just barely under 1.100. I would assume the difference is pectin or other added goodies. Unless, you ended up adding less water than you thought you did or perhaps the jam/jelly has more sugar in it that was reported.

 

[BernardSmith]

Thanks Seth. No I think I added the appropriate amount of water. I wonder whether the pectin and jelly in the must provide a reading which is not accurate. If so , I wonder how people who make wine from jam measure the initial SG unless they use a refractometer.

 

[seth8530]

My guess is that they either measure it wrong or they manage to brake down the pectin with sufficient pectic enzyme.

 

[BernardSmith]

I added a whack of pectin enzyme - perhaps a couple of tablespoons over 24 hours and although now the jam is becoming far more liquid the SG is still way off the scale. I wonder if I do need to dilute the must until I get a reading of 1.000 rather than treat the SG (by calculation) as the target...

 

[Loner]

Throw some 1118 at it and let it rip. if you are concerned with a high abv you could dilute it a (small) amount and use a milder yeast better suited for your must. As always its your wine .. Do what makes you happy .. Too much water will not make you happy.

 

[jensmith]

Just as an fyi. Sg readings of a mashed fruit must and the same mushy mess strained read the same sg levels. So I assume the fruit peices and jelly slop do not alter the sg significaly.
I have not done any jelly wine so I can't help much. However a 1.100 sg is what I usually start at.
I would make a nice active yeast starter to give it a head start or water it down to at least 1.115.