NIAGARA... HIGH F.G.

[NorthernWinos]

QUESTION...?
I made a Niagara Grape Wine using Old Orchard Niagara [64 oz bottles] Welch's Niagara [frozen concentrate] and WineExpert White Grape Concentrate...the wine is tasting wonderful..much better than ever expected.

I used bentonite in the primary and felt I lost alot of volume on the first racking....once it was racked into the carboy I topped-off the carboy with about 2 quarts of a boxed wine ALMADEN Chardonnay....

The O.G. was 1.100 and soon after the racking to the carboy the S.G. was .997, ...and it has stayed at .997 for about a month now....so...I assume this will be the F.G.

Hers's the QUESTIONS......Does anyone think there was enough Sulfite or Sorbate in the 2 quarts of 'topping-off' wine to hault any further fermentaion???

Used Lalvin 1118 yeast, do you think the yeast just ran out???

Do you think I put too much grape juices in the wine?????....

I only used 1+3/4 cups of sugar in the 6 gallons...Probably could have fermented the wine without any sugar and used one more can of the frozen concentrate to achive the desired S.G.

I am surprised the wine finished with such a high F.G.

The wine is brilliantly clear from the bentonite proceedure....

It doesn't seem too sweet for us...My 'Honey' use to say he only liked red wines...when we tasted this one at the last racking he said it tasted like fresh grapes off the vine.

So, I think it is a hit...even tho it is only a bit sweeter than expected.

Edited by: Northern Winos

 

[masta]

Hers's the QUESTIONS......Does anyone think there was enough Sulfite or Sorbate in the 2 quarts of 'topping-off' wine to halt any further fermentation???

No....Adding sulfite and or sorbate will not stop fermentation it will only prevent fermentation from starting or restarting if sweetened.

Used Lalvin 1118 yeast, do you think the yeast just ran out???

This yeast has a alcohol tolerance of 18% ABV and your numbers work out to ~13.7% so I wouldsay no.

Do you think I put too much grape juices in the wine?????....

This yeast should have fermented to dry and 0.997 is certainly not sweet at all and would be considered dry or maybe off-dry.


So, I think it is a hit...even tho it is only a bit sweeter than expected.

Drink up and enjoy it!
Edited by: masta

 

[NorthernWinos]

Thanks Masta....Your words are wise...Drink and Enjoy!!!!
Usually our wines end up around .994-.992 or less....very dry, so I thought .997 was rather high...just was a bit of a surprise that it hasn't gone down more.
But....every batch is different, and this was a different type of wine for us to try, with all the store bought juices....Thanks for your words

 

[PolishWineP]

Salut!

 

[Funky Fish]

Something else I would ask: have you checked the calibration of your hydrometer? It should read exactly 1.000 in 60-degree (F) distilled water. If it reads a bit high or lowthere, it will read a bit high or lowin your wine as well.

 

[NorthernWinos]

Thanks for the intrest....the hydrometer is okay...I have 2 and they both read the same....so retired one till needed....like in case of an accident.

I always chill my test jar of wine to 60*F, then take my readings....Yes...I know there is a formula to compensate for the temperature difference, but I just pop a measuring cup of wine into the fridge with a thermometer, then fill the hydrometer test tube and check the S.G....so think I am doing it right.
This wine was 1.100 on the 18th and .998 on the 23rd in the primary ....so at the first racking it was that low of a S.G.....at that time I added about 2 quarts of store bought wine, and the S.G. a few days later was at .997 and has remained there for almost a month...I did see bubbles on the sides of the carboy for a couple weeks, think that is the gas that you all mention, I have never seen that before either, but thought it might have been from putting the Bentonite in the primary [also a new technique for me]...have been splashing it alot during the rackings and don't see bubbles any more.
So, this wine acted different from the start, fermented very fast and ended with a higher S.G. than I have experienced before.
It is a very clear foxy white wine...one that will be made again at this house.
Thanks again for the in-put...

Edited by: Northern Winos

 

[Joseph1]

I keep a bottle of distilled water at room temperature in my winery (kitchen). I take a hydrometer reading of the wine at room temperature and a reading of the distilled water. By subtracting the specific gravity of the water from the specific gravity of the wine, the result will be adjusted for any hydrometer calibration issues and any temperature corrections.<?amespace prefix = o ns = "urnchemas-microsoft-comfficeffice" />

 

[NorthernWinos]

Interesting...

 

[Funky Fish]

Thanks for the intrest....the hydrometer is okay...I have 2 and they both read the same....so retired one till needed....like in case of an accident.

I always chill my test jar of wine to 60*F, then take my readings....Yes...I know there is a formula to compensate for the temperature difference, but I just pop a measuring cup of wine into the fridge with a thermometer, then fill the hydrometer test tube and check the S.G....so think I am doing it right.

That sounds reasonable, but you still want to be sure it is reading 1.000 in distilled water at 60 degrees. Because if both of your hydrometers are reading 0.003 too high, you won't know this even though you are chilling your wine sample down to this temperature.

 

[NorthernWinos]

Guess I better get some distilled water and give that a try.