Watermelon ordeal

[Rickster57]

So, I have this 6 gallon batch of watermelon aging in the carboy. It is clear, tastes pretty good, but is super sweet. The day I was mixing the must, I broke my hydrometer and didn’t get a SG reading. I live in a rural area so there was no chance I could run out and buy a new one, so I dumped all the sugar I had in there (16 lbs) and let er rip. Fermentation was fast and furious! Now there is no more fermentation going on, the SG is 1.014. I have 2 vinometers, one reads 14% abv and the other reads 22%abv. I did dilute the sample with distilled water and multiply x2. Yeast was Lalvin EC-1118.
Thinking of blending it with a dry wine or something like that. Is the alcohol too high to try to restart a fermentation? What would you do?

 

[hounddawg]

Frist, I too live very rural, and years ago i learned to keep at least 5 hydrometers, just for that reason, I have to buy mine online,
I actually broke 2 in one sitting, so my number since been 5 of em.
Second, what yeast did you use?
now for your help hey @Rice_Guy
Good luck,
so you FSG is 1.014 and it's to sweet?
my standard FSG for my country wines is FSG 1.040
but i run my ABV% way up there, and i use 4-5 times or more fruit than is called for, depending on the fruit, banana i use 12 lbs to gallon apple juice, and a lot of golden raisins,
I've never made watermelon, i love watermelons,for eating, but i live where some of the sweetest melons grow form porta Ar, to cave city Arkansas. so good luck again,
Dawg
Forgive me @Rice_Guy ...

 

[cmason1957]

Vinometers are notoriously wrong. Particularly in sweet wines. You can almost give up on restarting fermentation.

 

[ChuckD]

I would make a lower alcohol dry watermelon wine and blend them post-fermentation to reach the level of sweetness you desire. As @hounddawg said, go high on the fruit.

 

[Rice_Guy]

Choices, what is your goal? You have several directions available.
* all beverages are a balance of flavor. Sweet balances against acid. Try a glass with a pinch more acid blend, still sweet try two, etc till the flavors balance.
* astringent flavor tannins like chestnut tannin also balance against sweet. Do you have any wine tannin? Test it similar to the acid blend but a toothpick with powder on it is enough. Tannin produces a stronger flavor response. If you are buying tannin there are versions called finishing tannin designed for use at bottle time.
* if we know the weight of everything we can calculate what your starting gravity should have been. And what your ABV is now. Watermelon juice can be volume it is fairly consistent every year.
* my experience with watermelon juice is that it oxidizes making a green grassy flavor, do you like the flavor? is it worth the effort?
* EC 1118 is a strong yeast. It can go up to 18 and even 19% ABV. You won’t get another yeast to grow at this ABV.
* As noted blend with another wine or tart flavor fruit cider (5 to 8% ABV)