I made two floral wines, honeysuckle and elderflower. Neither fermented dry and I taste a lot of residual sugar. At least that’s what it seems to me, sickenly sweet to the point I can’t drink it. I personally don’t like sweet wine. On the other hand I have some dragon blood in bulk that I added 6lbs of wild blackberries. It is super tart. Could mix the sweet and tart and possibly have something drinkable? Or is the sweet I am tasting from the floral wines a sign of something gone bad and maybe I should toss it?
Mixing wines
- Thread starter Newbie Mel
- Start date
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* what is the finished gravity? If the gravity on your flower wine is under 0.996 you are “dry”. In this case the acid balance is thin.
* do you know the TA? The general formula is that a food will balance sweetness which comes from sugar and alcohol against acid flavor which comes from the total acidity and the astringent flavor tannins.
You can change the sweet sensation by adding more acid or by adding a finishing tannin. This would be done in a contest by the judges taking a pinch of acid blend and mixing it in the glass they are evaluating.
* a sweet wine can be mixed with an acidic wine to change the balance. I would encourage you to do a bench trial to figure out what ratio you find pleasing. Mixing two wines can restart a fermentation, create an environment where limiting factors go away. Keeping under an airlock should be done or if bottled add sorbate.
* do you know the TA? The general formula is that a food will balance sweetness which comes from sugar and alcohol against acid flavor which comes from the total acidity and the astringent flavor tannins.
You can change the sweet sensation by adding more acid or by adding a finishing tannin. This would be done in a contest by the judges taking a pinch of acid blend and mixing it in the glass they are evaluating.
* a sweet wine can be mixed with an acidic wine to change the balance. I would encourage you to do a bench trial to figure out what ratio you find pleasing. Mixing two wines can restart a fermentation, create an environment where limiting factors go away. Keeping under an airlock should be done or if bottled add sorbate.
Thank you for your response. The finished gravity on both florals was slightly above 1.000. I will try adding a bit of acid and see if that helps. Thanks!
