oops!...extended primary time. Help?

[cropdusterdave]

Hi folks. I'm sorry for such a newbie question...but I can't seem to find a similar problem in the forums to help my situation. Hoping someone can give me a bit of advice. Anywho...I've been making beer for several years now and decided recently to give wine a try. I completed a winexpert kit a while back...followed the instructions to the letter...and it came out great. So I decided to replicate my effort. I started two winexpert batches. After about 5 days in the primary I ended up getting sent off for a two week work trip. I didn't think much of it as both batches were sealed with an airlock and were still bubbling away when I left. FIgured I'd just rack them over to the secondary when I got back. Which is today. Problem I noticed is that the Specific gravity is waaaay high. Which is the opposite of what I thought I"d find. They both went in at 1.080 and are supposed to be around 1.010 at racking. Both are sitting at 1.025 today after three weeks in primary. With fermentation complete...I don't believe the SG is going to drop off any further to achieve the sub 1.0 required for stabilizing and clearing. I'm a little concerned that I have a couple hundred bucks worth of vinnegar on my hands.

Any suggestions?
Thanks!

 

[richmke]

20 days in the Primary? Not the end of the world.

How does it taste? If it tastes sweet, then fermentation stalled, and you need to restart it.

If it tastes dry, then something may be wrong with your hydrometer.

Regardless, I would rack off the lees as soon as possible.

What kits did you make?

 

[berrycrush]

I think you should give it more time to complete. Did you turn the temperature down when you leave? It that is the case then it explains the slow fermentation. It happened to me once and I was worried a bit after hearing prognosis like "it will never go dry" etc. But it did in the end, just needed more time.

 

[cropdusterdave]

I made a white zin and a coastal red both from Winexpert. The zin tastes vinegary...much like the moscato that I did previous before adding the f-pack juice. It shouldn't have oxidized...and the yeast in the bottom had no odors so I'm not worried about that stuff...just the unusually higher gravity for this stage given the simplicity of these kits.

 

[JohnT]

Cropduster,

Interesting... You say that your SG is about 1.08, but it does not taste sweet?

I would first start out by calibrating your hydrometer. Place it into distilled water at the temperature that should be written on the paper scale inside the unit. The reading should be a perfect 0. If not, then your hydrometer is off.

If you are sure that fermentation is complete (and not simply stalled) I would give it a good dose of k-meta and rack asap. If the fermentation is stalled, and there is a lot of residual sugar, then (as @berrycrush suggests) raise the temperature of the wine to about 75 degrees and allow to sit on the gross lees a while longer.

 

[cropdusterdave]

No I started with 1.08 and ended fermentation at 1.025

 

[sour_grapes]

I'll try one last time.

Dave: Does it taste sweet?

 

[cropdusterdave]

Sorry...no, it doesn't taste sweet. And now I"m wondering. I checked the SG with my refractometer and got the 1.025 reading. However when I check with my hydrometer I get 0.990 which makes alot more sense. When checked against tap water the hydrometer reads a 1.0...so I think I may press on...

 

[sour_grapes]

Yes, you cannot reliably use a refractometer to measure sugar after fermentation has started. This is because the index of refraction of alcohol is different from that of water.

There is a way to account for this if you are careful and keep notes, but the hydrometer is your friend here.

 

[richmke]

You can't use a refractometer to directly measure sugar in fermented wine. the alcohol throws it off.

Using an original SG of 1.08, and a final brix of 5.1 (SG of 1.02), that gives an adjusted SG of 0.999, which is close to your hydrometer.
http://www.brewersfriend.com/refractometer-calculator/

 

[JohnT]

Yup, +1 on all of the others.

Refractometers are great for initial readings, but once fermentation starts you can not use them unless you go through a WHOLE lot of math. Stick with the hydrometer at this point.

 

[cropdusterdave]

Man...I really should have known that. I've never bothered checking the gravity of my beers after fermentation. Learn somethin new every day...

Thanks

 

[JohnT]

Man...I really should have known that. I've never bothered checking the gravity of my beers after fermentation. Learn somethin new every day...

Thanks

Hey, no problem. If we all knew everything, this website wouldn't exist!