Topping Up Rice and Raisin

[EnchantedGrape]

Hello,

I am making a rice and raisin wine and it is currently in the airlock and needs topping up. It smells very fruity and I would like to encourage this. Has anyone made this wine before and know what I should top up with? I was thinking orange or pineapple juice but wasnt sure. Your ideas would be appreciated.

Cheers

 

[oxeye]

Hi Enchanted Grape -

I have no experience with rice wine per se, but knowing the original SG (specific gravity) of your must would be useful.

Most country wines (wines made from fruit other than grapes) need to have sugar added when water is added to top off.

If your recipe isn't very specific, the only way to know for sure is to take a gravity reading with a hydrometer.

If this is your first batch of this particular recipe, I would advise simply following it as it is in order to establish a baseline reference. Then in the future, IF you feel the need to experiment with it, then go ahead, making a log of each and every change.

However, if you are very familar with this wine, say you are using a friend's, or family recipe, that you have had many samples of, then by all means seek to jazz it up if you feel the need.

If it was sweet enough at the beginning to yield a desired ABV, then I would just be interested making modifications just for taste/flavor.

But, if the OG is low, then you would need to consider additions such as concentrated juices or sugared water.

It would help if you posted the recipe, and tell us what size batch you are brewing.

oxeye

 

[EnchantedGrape]

My recipe is,

900 g rice
900 g raisins
900 g sugar
juice of 2 lemons
yeast
1/2 tsp yeast nutrient

I got this recipe from a web site. I dont know what all the readings are. This is my first batch ever and I still have just the basic equipment. But anytime I have tasted it, it has been very sweet. The first time I topped up I just did a water and sugar syrup but it is now in need of a second top up. It smells so fruity and delicious I was thinking pineapple juice. But I don't know anything about wines.

Cheers

 

[EnchantedGrape]

Oh and its 1 gallon

 

[oxeye]

Hi again, EnhancedGrape -

Hmmm, you must be outside the USA, using all of these metric sizes!!

I have no idea how grams convert to liters, or mL's, so if you have already topped off once, unless you have a pretty good sized air space below the neck, I would just leave it like it is.

If not just simply filtered water, at the most, I'd only add a straight 100% juice of your choice.

BE CAREFUL IN SELECTING JUICES!!!

Many include preservatives which will stall your fermentation!!!

Any long chemical sounding ingredient, unless you know for sure it is not a preservative, should be avoided. Just to stay on the safe side, anything other than juice, juice concentrate, water, and ascorbic acid (Vitamin C) will probably cause problems!

Maybe some others can offer some better ideas.

Good luck,

oxeye

 

[EnchantedGrape]

Mmm, Im from Canada currently in New Zealand right now. Thanks for the info. I just used all natural pineapple juice. I will tell you how it turns out in a couple of weeks. Thanks!

Cheers