Abv

[Loner]

If you start at 1.090 and ferment to 0.990 you will be @ 13.4% abv. If you back sweeten to 1.010 does it affect your abv ? If so how do you calculate it.

 

[jamesngalveston]

if you start at 1.090 and back sweeten to 1.010 your abv will be about
10.5....
http://www.davesdreaded.com/homebrew-calculator/

 

[Thig]

if you start at 1.090 and back sweeten to 1.010 your abv will be about
10.5....
http://www.davesdreaded.com/homebrew-calculator/

James I am not sure about this, I think it would depend on how much volume you added when you back sweetened.

 

[Thig]

If you started at 1.090 and could stop it at 1.010 I agree you would be at about 10.5%. Backsweetening should have little affect on abv.

 

[Julie]

Yes your are correct in saying your ABV would be 13% but backsweetening does not affect your ABV.

 

[jamesngalveston]

I am not sure on this...I think i read the thread wrong..but after reading Thigs and Julies post, i have to do some research.
I think that when your wine is at a certaing Abv...anything you add to it will change this...Why.
abv...alcohol by volume..if you change the volume you will change the abv.
I have to ask seth about this.
THanks julie and thig for the correction.
sorry

 

[Thig]

THanks julie and thig for the correction.
sorry

This site will definitely keep you on your toes.

 

[Loner]

I thought it would be an interesting question .. To be honest I didn't know the answer. I can see yeast converting sugar to alcohol. I can't see where additional sugar to a dry wine that has been treated with sorbate would greatly affect the abv except in the area related to volume that James mentioned.

 

[BernardSmith]

James, ABV is the percentage of alcohol by volume. If the ABV of say 1 gallon is 13.5% and you backsweeten by adding sugar to raise the final gravity from .090 to 1.010, you will need to add 200 gms of sugar (50 gms of sugar increases gravity of 1 gallon by .050). Two hundred gms of sugar is about 1 cup. In my experience adding one cup of sugar won't add very much volume to 1 gallon of wine nor will adding five cups to five gallons. It might increase the volume so that the final ABV is still more than 13% if not quite 13.5%

 

[GreginND]

The volume change when adding sweetening sugar is very small. The error in measuring your abv will be significantly larger than the volume change.

 

[Arne]

Agree, Greg.
I believe the only time the sweetening will effect the abv very much is if you don't stabalize first. Then it can take off again and ferment out your sweetener, raising the abv. Arne.