Apricot wine problem

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fluidp

Junior
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Hello, can anyone help me with a problem. I am making apricot wine and when I racked it after the primary fermentation the consistancy was thick, kinda like a light syrup consistancy. It was quite warm when I made it and I think it fermented a bit fast. Also the sg is where it should be when finished.
It has been in the secondary for a couple of months now and I went to rack it and it is still thick.
Not sure what to do. Any help would be appreciated. Thanks
 
Hello and welcome to the forum,

Can you list your recipe and method for us please? We need a little more information to be of help.

Allie
 
ok, I started out with 25 lbs of ripe apricots, washed and pitted apricots and sterilised primary.
Lightly hand squished apricots into primary and added a dozen of crushed pits.
In a large pot I put 12 lbs of sugar and water and made syrup and added to primary.
i then added water to just above the 5 gal mark and stirred well.
I waited till the temp was about 84 deg and the sg was 1.090 then I added the wine yeast.

thats it, the temp out side was about 90 + so it was hard to get the temp down.
Within 24 hrs the wine was working very good, almost too good as it foamed over the top of the primary. I moved it to the bacement where it was a bit cooler and it started working a bit more normal.
After a few days, 4 days I started to skim the fruit from the top.
It was about 9 days when I thought I could get it in a secondary so I started racking.
Right away I noticed the thick consistancy. I tasted it and it tasted like it had don alot of fermenting in a very short time.
Now it is a couple months later and I am racking again. Still a thick consistancy.

Thats about it, not sure what to do??
 
ok.. a couple of things there.. when you racked the wine off the fruit pulp, did you strain it at all?.. like through a double layer of muslin? Usually when using a fruit pulp you would add pectic enzyme to the wine before yeast addition.. this helps break down the pectin in the fruit. It sounds like you have a lot of suspended fruit particles and pectin in the wine. You can add pectic enzyme to the wine to help remove the pulp and get it to drop out as sediment.. but not until it is finished fermenting as pectic enzyme doesn't work very well in the presence of an active yeast fermentation.

Do you have access to a home brew store locally?

Allie
 
Also your hydrometer reading may be a bit off due to the consistency of your wine. Does it still taste sweet?

Allie
 
You have fruit pulp in there and NO pectic enzyme.
You should have put the fruit in a straing bag.
I would add pectic enzyme and a clearing agent like super kleer. Wait till you have a "hard" sediment (in 3-4 weeks)and rack.
Why did you add pits? They can add a bitter taste.
 
thanks for the tips. i will add the pectic enzime in a few weeks when I am sure it is done working.
About the pits I added. i got that from a couple different recipies I found on the net and it was in a old wine making book I use. I will dig it out and post the name.
Thanks again
 
I made a cherry liqueur that recommended crushing and adding the pits .. It added quite a harsh earthy flavour which 10 months later is still there.. I've put it in the cellar for a year to see if it will eventually dissipate.

hopefully you added less pits in a larger volume of liquid and it won't be so noticeable.

Allie
 
thanks for the tips. i will add the pectic enzime in a few weeks when I am sure it is done working.
About the pits I added. i got that from a couple different recipies I found on the net and it was in a old wine making book I use. I will dig it out and post the name.
Thanks again

KEY words. Found on the net ( you have no idea how old it is)
An OLD wine making book ( How old?) was it a good recipe in todays standards?
Check here now that you found us for ANY help. We talk from experience..
 
You have fruit pulp in there and NO pectic enzyme.
You should have put the fruit in a straing bag.
I would add pectic enzyme and a clearing agent like super kleer. Wait till you have a "hard" sediment (in 3-4 weeks)and rack.
Why did you add pits? They can add a bitter taste.

agreed. if you want it clear fast. that stuff works great. i try to avoid it, but sometimes you need a carboy and you don't want too much floaters and haze.

most seeds/pits are bad for wine. crushing them made it even worse. it still should be fine, just not as good as it would have been. :D
 

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