?'s before I make my batches this year

[Stressbaby]

Regarding the Marquette: there are some things you can do for bitterness but way too early for anything remedial if you ask me. It's close, I'd just watch the SG a few more days.

Regarding the St Croix: I'm not following you when you say "I couldn't get the Brix up past 21..."

 

[DeerValley]

Regarding the Marquette: there are some things you can do for bitterness but way too early for anything remedial if you ask me. It's close, I'd just watch the SG a few more days.

Regarding the St Croix: I'm not following you when you say "I couldn't get the Brix up past 21..."

For the St Croix the Brix was around 20 when I added the Campden. I had to leave town and so it was 48 hours from the time I added the Campden tablets and the Brix had dropped a ways. I ended up added around 7 pounds of sugar dissolved in hot water. That got my Brix to around 20.

So I added the rest of the sugar in my house which was around 10 lbs and the Brix only moved to 21. I didn't have any other sugar so I just added the yeast since it had already been more than the 24 hours that I was planning on waiting.

 

[DeerValley]

As for the Marquette. I was reading a different thread and it sounds like bitterness is pretty common at the beginning and should get better after it is racked a few times. Hoping that is the case. It smells like wine at least.

Sunday I will probably try pressing it into carboys.

 

[balatonwine]

I wasn't able to test its PH or acid either.
...
Also, the other problem was after smashing the grapes we added the campden to kill the wild yeast.
...
The starting BRix should have been at least 21 before I even added sugar. It had dropped since I crushed the grapes making me think the wild yeast wasn't killed and it started fermenting?

The amount of SO2 you in the must to be effective, and so the number of campden tablets to add, is pH dependent. If the must after crush had a high pH, then it is possible the amount you added may not have been enough, especially if you already saw a drop in brix before you added your yeast.

 

[Stressbaby]

The amount of SO2 you in the must to be effective, and so the number of campden tablets to add, is pH dependent. If the must after crush had a high pH, then it is possible the amount you added may not have been enough, especially if you already saw a drop in brix before you added your yeast.

That's where I was going. What was the SG of the St Croix before you added the first of the extra sugar?

Also, what is your must volume? I saw 40gal but that is your "just picked" volume, not the volume of the must I'm guessing. 170# of grapes is closer to 12-14 gallons of wine, 16-19 gallons of must. With that volume, 17# of sugar is a LOT of sugar to add. (You'd use 21 Brix as your starting point, not the readinig just before adding the sugar.) Using WineCalc, 17gallons of must, starting with 21 Brix, you only need 5# of sugar to get to 24 Brix. 17# of sugar puts you over 30 Brix. That would make rocket fuel and could easily exceed the alcohol tolerance of the yeast you used.

 

[DeerValley]

That's where I was going. What was the SG of the St Croix before you added the first of the extra sugar?

Also, what is your must volume? I saw 40gal but that is your "just picked" volume, not the volume of the must I'm guessing. 170# of grapes is closer to 12-14 gallons of wine, 16-19 gallons of must. With that volume, 17# of sugar is a LOT of sugar to add. (You'd use 21 Brix as your starting point, not the readinig just before adding the sugar.) Using WineCalc, 17gallons of must, starting with 21 Brix, you only need 5# of sugar to get to 24 Brix. 17# of sugar puts you over 30 Brix. That would make rocket fuel and could easily exceed the alcohol tolerance of the yeast you used.

I would say my must volume is around 20 gallons. For whatever reason all of that sugar only got my Brix to the 21 or 22 range.

I have continued stirring both every day. I am going to check the SG tonight of both. I assume the Marquette is done so I will transfer to carboy.

 

[DeerValley]

The Marquette was still 1.020 so hasn't come down at all for several days.


The St. Croix was 1.035 so coming down very slow.

 

[Stressbaby]

I went back through the thread and didn't see what yeast you used.

WineCalc tells me that if you add 17# sugar to 20 gallons at 20 brix you get 16.2% ABV which might exceed the alcohol tolerance of your yeast and cause it to slow or stick.

I would be concerned that the sugar didn't get dissolved/dispersed and your reading post sugar addition was off.

 

[DeerValley]

I went back through the thread and didn't see what yeast you used.

WineCalc tells me that if you add 17# sugar to 20 gallons at 20 brix you get 16.2% ABV which might exceed the alcohol tolerance of your yeast and cause it to slow or stick.

I would be concerned that the sugar didn't get dissolved/dispersed and your reading post sugar addition was off.

I don't have the yeast with me but it was a Dry Red Wine yeast. The St Croix sounds like it is still slowly fermenting but not much and not sure why it is taking so long for the SG to come down. Should I add more yeast? Or Add water and Yeast?

 

[DeerValley]

Any suggestions on whether to add more yeast?

 

[Stressbaby]

Any suggestions on whether to add more yeast?

Sorry you didn't get a reply on this.
What's the status?