help with blueberry pinot noir, low abv

[cheesehead]

i have an 6 gal island mist kit that is ready to bottle,however the abv appears to be 2%, very sweet and clear,initial reading was 1.056, final was 1.021 any ideas on how to raise the final abv prior to bottling without killing the flavor, thanx, cheesehead

 

[NashChic]

Is that final gravity reading after the f-pack was added?

 

[FABulousWines]

Yeah, what NashChic said. Is this the final SG reading before adding the f-pack or before? If after, did you get an SG reading before adding it?

I see two possibilities. If your starting SG was 1.056 and you let it ferment dry before adding the f-pack, then you probably finished somewhere around .996 to .998 (guessing). That would give you an ABV of around 7%. If you haven't added the f-pack yet then it looks like your ferment got stuck. If that case if you've already added sorbate and stabilizer and fermentation is no longer going on you are done. You can always add some brandy or other alcohol (a little everclear) to boost up the fuel. If you haven't added sorbate you make be able to add nutrient or more yeast to get it going again. We really need more info to know how to help you (hence all the "ifs").

 

[cheesehead]

thanx for the quick reply guys,
in order, heres what happened to the 5.5gals
1- pitched yeast ( premium Cuvee) on 4-5-13 temp was 74.9 degrees, inactive for 20hrs, SG 1.0545
2- on 4-8-13, racked into carboy, SG 1.000 ( thats where the SG sat for 3 days) never had 1 stuck before so i assumed it wasnt gonna go lower, minor activity after racking, needed at least .996 at 73 degrees, panic
3- racked on 4-27-13 SG was 1.018 and again appeared stuck -mild panic starting to set in, oh well added f-pack and clarifier, and sorbate to carboy
4- racked again 5-17-13, clearing nicely, very sweet SG 1.021 and holding, clear enough to bottle , but since its in a 6.5 gal carboy i dont what it in too long with the space of 02 on top for fear of spoilage. final temp mantained was 73 degrees
hope that gives ya an idea of if and where i went wrong
yes i have heard that i could add a " like wine" to it, or some kind of hard liquor

 

[grapeman]

You should have let it ferment to dry, then add the sorbate and f-pack. You just aren't going to have an idea of what the abv truly is now. This ends up a sweet, light wine about 7% when done correctly. Not sure what you should do now except drink it and learn from your mistake (number 3- should have let go to about 0.996 before racking and adding f-pack and sorbate).

 

[FABulousWines]

Well I will have to humbly admit that I am too inexperienced to help further. I was OK up to where you said your SG was 1.000 and stopped. If your wine was at 75degrees and your hydrometer is calibrated for 60degrees then that would be more like 0.998 and definitely dry. Where I got flamboozled was on #3 where you said the SG rose to 1.018. I am not sure how that can happen without adding sweetener/f-pack. Hopefully someone can come along and comment. It also doesn't seem likely that adding the f-pack would raise it from 1.018 to 1.021, they are usually much sweeter than that. If anything I would guess the 1.018 reading is suspect. If we disregard that, then your wine is probably about 7% ABV.

It's your wine, if you want to fortify it further, have at. I would recommend testing a small sample first before scaling up and adding to the batch.

 

[grapeman]

You got confused FAB because he edited it from a higher amount. I think it is all suspect now as we don't know what is real and what is not.

 

[gird123]

Use the Pearson square and up it to 18% with brandy and call it a port. You would need a lot if brandy.

 

[Stefani]

Or you can use Pearson's Square and fortify it with 100 proof vodka.

 

[cheesehead]

thanx again gang, the 1.018 was after the addition of f- pack and i was using the hydrometers correction of .002 for the temp at 73 degrees, it did read .998 at its lowest and 1.000 after the temp adjustment.
not firmiliar with pearsons square but will read up and use it as a backup on future batches, will take another taste test and start adding alternative alcohol, cuz this stuff tastes great but no kick at all (kool-aid)

 

[Deezil]

Sounds like you have about 7.5 % +/- ABV if indeed it fermented from 1.056 to .998.. Then you added the F-pack to bring the SG to 1.018 / 1.021...

If its still at 1.018 / 1.021, if its clear.. Sounds like you're close to bottling-time.

To spike the ABV on something like an island mist kit, i would use a cheap-but-not-harshcheap vodka.. It's not meant to be stored for long term; definitely a drink you could serve over ice and not make JohnT spit and sputter (too bad) - not worthy of a brandy or cognac.

 

[cheesehead]

Sounds like you have about 7.5 % +/- ABV if indeed it fermented from 1.056 to .998.. Then you added the F-pack to bring the SG to 1.018 / 1.021...

If its still at 1.018 / 1.021, if its clear.. Sounds like you're close to bottling-time.

To spike the ABV on something like an island mist kit, i would use a cheap-but-not-harshcheap vodka.. It's not meant to be stored for long term; definitely a drink you could serve over ice and not make JohnT spit and sputter (too bad) - not worthy of a brandy or cognac.

any ideas as to how many bottles of vodka to use for 5.5gals or should i get drunk experimenting, nevermind i think i just answered my own question, lol, i was looking for at least 7-9% if poss, without losing too much flavor. im also confused with the pearsons calculations at the point where i dont know the quantity of the additive, it does say bottle,litres gallons but thats quite vague to me.

 

[vernsgal]

If your starting SG was 1.056 and before adding the F pak it was 1.00 that would give you a 7% alc. reading which is about right for these kits. They're high in sweetness low in alc., more like a summertime cooler.One of my daughters absolutely loves them. In future add some sugar to primary to raise your brix.

 

[Deezil]

any ideas as to how many bottles of vodka to use for 5.5gals or should i get drunk experimenting, nevermind i think i just answered my own question, lol, i was looking for at least 7-9% if poss, without losing too much flavor. im also confused with the pearsons calculations at the point where i dont know the quantity of the additive, it does say bottle,litres gallons but thats quite vague to me.

You're at roughly 7.5 % now... How high do you wish to go?

Here's an example, using 40% ABV Brandy with a 12% ABV wine to reach 18% ABV total. Just substitute your numbers and re-work the math.

A = Your wine, ABV 12%?
B = Your Brandy, 40%?
C = The ABV you want - 18%?

D = Brandy by 'parts'
E = Your wine by 'parts'

C - A = E
B - C = D

18 - 12 = 6
40 - 18 = 22

22 parts wine, 6 parts brandy

22 + 6 = 28 total parts
6/28 = 21.42% brandy
22/28 = 78.57% wine

78.57% = 6 gallons of wine
6 gallons x 5 bottles per gallon = 30

BottlesBrandy = [%Brandy * (BottlesWine / %Wine)]
Brandy = [21.42 * (30/78.57)]

8.17 bottles (fifths) of 40% brandy to reach 18% from 12%


If ya cant get it to work out correctly, lemme know how high you want to push the ABV and i'll re-work it and post it so you can see, sometimes that makes it "click"