Acid testing

[Jim P]

I would like to know when is the proper time to test the acidity of the juice.
Do you test it before adding any water or sugar to the juice , and do you test it again before it starts fermenting.

 

[Bert]

Test after adding the water, as you will lower the acid by diluting with the water....before or after adding the sugar is OK as adding sugar won't change the acid level...hope this helps

 

[Wade E]

I would also test it after it is done fermenting and adjust then if needed. It is 1 of the things that will make your wine stay longer on the shelf as during fermentation it can lower. Getting it close to right to begin with like Bert has mentioned wil make the yeast happy and give a better fermentation.

 

[grapeman]

What are you making and how much experience do you have?


That would influence if I recommended you to test at all or not. If it is a simple wine that is likely to be good whether or notyou adjusted it then you could measure it if you like to tinker. The problem is that if you have never made wine before (or not much) you don't have the routine down yet. If you also have never tested, you can get a false reading. Combine those two and you could have a disaster.


If you have plenty of experience and feel comfortable with your testing skills, then yes, test ahead of fermentation after adding needed sugars and water and then again after fermentation.

 

[Jim P]

Yes , I am new at making wine , and I started about1 1/2years ago.


I live in central Texas and use the grapes and berries that are avaliable in this area.
I made a 5gal. batch of dewberry , and using the acid titration test , it tested at .50 , so I added 2.5 tsp of acid blend. After fermentation it tested at .80 , and later bottled.


I made a 8.5 gal. batch of mustang grape , and it also tested at .50 , so I added 5 tsp of acid blend , and after fermentation it tested at .70-.80.


That seems like a high acid level by the test , but it doesn't seem that way by taste.


I thank you all for you advice.

 

[grapeman]

It sounds like you have a good grasp on the procedure the way you are doing it. If you ever do one with a very dark must or juice, use a pH meter for checking the change point of the sodium hydroxide. The dark ones are hard to read and that leads to errors. Your after numbers are just a bit high. You might want to back off slightly on your additions and try for about .70 - .75.