How to tell final SG?

[arthur2647]

Hi, i have been making a wine now for a few weeks using red star montrachet yeast. The starting SG was ~1.116 and the final sg based on the room temp water measurement was around 1.006 ( guessing the hydrometer is slightly off). Am i looking to end up with 1.006 or more like 1.000? I'm not really sure what to look for exactly as i want it to be on the dry side, but maybe not bone dry. This is my first time so any input is helpful. thanks

 

[jsbeckton]

There is prob a correction that needs to be applied if its at 72F vs 60F so it's likely more like 1.008 which is dry for a beer but not so much for a wine. You are likely looking for something less than 1.000.

 

[richmke]

With SG from 1.116 to 1.006, your ABV is around 15%. red star montrachet yeast has an alcohol tolerance of 13%, so you are probably done.


> i want it to be on the dry side

Taste it. If it tastes ok to you then call it a day. If it is still too sweet, then to ferment the last little bit of sugar, pitch some EC-1118 yeast.

 

[JohnT]

1.116 (or 27.2 brix) is a very high starting point. The potential alcohol is around 16.9abv which is way more than the upper limit of 13% for red star.

Like richmke said, if you are hoping for a dry wine...

go with EC-1118 (a champagne yeast) that is a lot more tolerant, add a dose of yeast nutrient, and warm the must to around 80 degrees F.

 

[heatherd]

Hi, i have been making a wine now for a few weeks using red star montrachet yeast. The starting SG was ~1.116 and the final sg based on the room temp water measurement was around 1.006 ( guessing the hydrometer is slightly off). Am i looking to end up with 1.006 or more like 1.000? I'm not really sure what to look for exactly as i want it to be on the dry side, but maybe not bone dry. This is my first time so any input is helpful. thanks

@arthur2647 what kind of wine are you making?

 

[arthur2647]

I am making a blueberry, apple, and strawberry wine. I was under the impression this yeast can get around 15% with a little bit of extra time, maybe i am wrong. I'm thinking i may add 2 cups of water or maybe 2 cups of tea and that should create a more reasonable abv. It is currently down to 1.02 after a few weeks. I'm only making a little over a gallon.

 

[arthur2647]

Also im a little confused because if i measured 1.116 which is +.006 above what it should be due to the calibration issue, then shouldnt i finish at .996 which is +.006 above .990? If i put that into the calculator that gives me 15.75 percent? I'm just trying to make sense of things

 

[richmke]

due to the calibration issue

Did you calibrate? If you did not, how do you know you have a calibration issue?

If i put that into the calculator that gives me 15.75 percent?

I was under the impression this yeast can get around 15% with a little bit of extra time

Depends upon the yeast. red star montrachet yeast quits around 13%. You are around 15% right now, so I wouldn't expect any more from the yeast. If you want to give it a lot more time (another month), a few hearty souls might keep going.

 

[DoctorCAD]

15% in a fruit wine is just too high. The fruit flavor will be overwhelmed by the hot from the alcohol.

Try starting at 1.092 or so and I think your wines will taste much better.

 

[Noontime]

We're in S. Florida and make A LOT of fruit wines, and I have to agree with DoctorCAD that most fruit wines benefit from a lower alcohol range of 8% to 12%. I'm not a huge fan of the lower end and we usually make ours in the 11-12% range. For this batch, I'm not sure how much trouble you want to go to try and "fix" it. It kind of is what it is. And who knows, maybe you'll love the high alcohol (and I'm sure it will be very drinkable). But the only way I see you making a balanced wine out of this one is to go sweeter and make it more of a dessert wine. Trying to dilute it is just going to do exactly that...dilute the taste and diminish the wine. My advice is the enjoy this one and use the experience to make something more to your liking next time.

 

[arthur2647]

Thanks for the replies. Well the hydrometer measured 1.006 no matter how many times I tried to measure it in water around 60F. But anyway we will see how it turns out. It's my first time after all

 

[Noontime]

You're paying a whole lot more attention to detail than most on their first wine, so kudos to you my friend. We're all learning as we go. Have fun and enjoy the wine!

 

[wineforfun]

Gotta agree with @DoctorCAD also. Wayyyyy too high on the ABV for a fruit wine. Don't get me wrong, I like me a high alcohol wine, but only in certain wines. Coming over from the liquor world, that was the first thing I had to learn was "more isn't always better" when upping the ABV in wine.
I make all my fruit wines in the 11.5 - 12% range.

 

[Noontime]

I'm not sure if your hydrometer has the potential alcohol scale, but this is a handy scale to have. We don't let any of our fruit wines start above 1.090.

 

[richmke]

Well the hydrometer measured 1.006 no matter how many times I tried to measure it in water around 60F.

Is it hitting the bottom of your Test Jar? (just kidding).

Ok, so you you know that your hydrometer reads 0.006 high. So, you can expect your wines should finish between 0.998 and 1.004.

In any case, to figure ABV, it is the change in SG that is important (1.116 to 1.006). Or, if you want to figure out potential ABV before you start, subtract 0.006 from your reading.

 

[arthur2647]

Haha no it's not hitting the bottom. Thanks for all your replies we will see how it turns out.