Kumquat plus tropical fruit

[Jal5]

i started this Dragons Blood variant on Feb24 using kumquat plus frozen tropical fruit mix from walmart. Followed the DB recipe. For a 3g batch.

Yeast started fine EC 1118 and went great for two days then stopped. I restarted this must with another yeast batch that again went for two days and stopped. Now I am puzzled what could cause this and what to do. I am at my daughters home so I don’t have my hydrometer to take any readings. Must is still sweet and tart with pulp from the fruit suspended. I did not add lemon juice to this one since I knew the kumquats had plenty of acid. It stayed a week in primary then was racked before starting the second yeast starter and now it’s under airlock with no bubbling for two days.
All suggestions are welcome.

 

[Jal5]

All suggestions are welcome.

My idea is to add more sugar and do one more yeast starter.

 

[Stressbaby]

I'd like to see a pH. You don't say how much fruit you used; while an individual kumquat is plenty acidic, it would take a LOT of kumquats juiced to equal the amount of lemon juice used in DB/SP.

And before adding sugar I'd like to know what the starting gravity was and what it is now.

 

[Jal5]

Fruit: 4# mixed frozen mango-pineapple-peach plus 5# kumquats fresh cut in half. All ffruit placed in bags and squeezed per DB recipe. Didn’t have a hydrometer so no SG readings. I know I used a little less than a 4 # sugar package though so say 3.5 #. Tastes a little alcohol and not sweet at all. Tart more than anything.

 

[tradowsk]

Question: how do you know fermentation stopped if you didn't have a hydrometer to take successive SG readings?

 

[Jal5]

It was completely “flat” with no evidence of gas at all. Best practices would be of course to take SG readings but I did not have a hydrometer with me on this trip.

 

[Jal5]

I ended up making a yeast starter per directions from eckraus.com and now we are into 48 hr of definite fermentation with adding more sugar too.

 

[Jal5]

This wine is chugging along now under airlock in a 3 g bottle. ABV may be strong in this one.

 

[Jal5]

Racked today and added kmeta plus chitosan to help clear it. Very orange colored, tastes strong etoh and tart at this point. Some light lees but not much upon racking.

 

[Jal5]

This wine has been nothing but trouble. Now even after chitosan/kieselsol its hardly clearing. Today is 5 days since adding the clearing agents.

Would another round of
C/K help or try something else?
Joe

 

[Johnd]

This wine has been nothing but trouble. Now even after chitosan/kieselsol its hardly clearing. Today is 5 days since adding the clearing agents.

Would another round of
C/K help or try something else?
Joe

Before adding more clearing agents, I'd try the following:

1. Increase the temps of the storage area to the mid-70's (if it's not already)
2. After the temps come up, make sure the wine is degassed
3. Add 1 tsp / gallon pectic enzyme, stir in well, see if there's any improvement, if not, repeat #3 a time or two.

 

[Jal5]

Thx John. Temp is no problem. Will try the degassing and more pectic enzyme. Wine is at my daughters house in FL so I am guiding her thru the steps.

Joe

 

[Jal5]

Update. Visited my daughter today and racked the wine. Cleared up considerably but still a little cloudy. Taste is astringent and strong etoh. Reminds me of the dandelion wine flavor- like flowers or stems hard to describe. That wine needed a full year to mellow. My thought is to let this one sit and see what time does to it. I added kmeta and ksorbate today plus some pectic enzyme.

 

[Jal5]

Decided to add DualFine 48 hrs ago. Wow that stuff really works. Another inch or more of white lees. But pretty clear results. Now to let it age some time in the bottle. Will probably backsweeten a little and maybe add some orange flavoring when I bottle it.

 

[Jal5]

Update:
This is now 11 months since beginning. Tasted it today. Very strong alcohol, nice light color, taste is hard to describe but you can get kumquat flavors.
I will be bottling this soon and plan on backsweetening a little. But the alcohol taste is strong-
Any ideas about that?
Joe

 

[Stressbaby]

Backsweeten.
Sugar is to fruit wine as caulk is to a house
[he says only somewhat tongue in cheek]

 

[Jal5]

Added simple sugar syrup today plus sorbate and kmeta before bottling. Yield was 16 full.
Beautiful light yellow color. Will likely age it another 6 months before trial. Definite kumquat citrus flavor not sure how to describe it.

 

[Jal5]

The finished product!