I always miss my numbers

[aryoung1980]

The day I hit my target OG and volume will be one that I celebrate. Hopefully it comes soon but tonight wasn't it.

My goal was to make a one gallon batch of cranberry wine with an OG of ~1.120. Well, first I over shot my OG. I calculated it to be in the neighborhood of 1.217. I couldn't use my hydrometer because the must was too thick. So I decided to dilute it to a 1.5 gallon batch. I thought I would add a total of 10 pints of water to my 5.25 lbs of cranberries and 3 lbs of sugar. After I added 8 pints (stopping short of my anticipated 10 pints) of water, I took a refractometer reading followed with a hydrometer reading. I didn't want to over dilute. Both read 1.084. Balls...I over diluted.

Oy. I'm done playing with it and I'm going to let it ride. I may back sweeten in the end with cranberry juice but who knows what the future will hold.


Sent from my iPhone using Wine Making

 

[Julie]

Always take a reading prior to adding any sugar, a simple calculation is 1 cup of sugar will raise sg .018 per gallon. To take a reading of a must that is very thick, take a fine mesh stainless steel strainer and push is down into the must, you should get enough juice to take a reading and since you have a refractometer you won't need very much. Also, you should have been able to take a reading directly using the refractometer.

 

[FTC Wines]

Besides what Julie said I would have diluted the must with Cranberry juice not water. U can use frozen cranberry juice as an F PAC if needed. Last year I over shot my SG & made rocket fuel, 14.2%, way to high for cranberry, so I let ferment dry, stabilized, then diluted it with pure cranberry juice down to 11%. We had 5 bottles yesterday, it was a huge hit! Roy

 

[the_rayway]

I use a wine calculator for estimates. It's super useful and helps me translate all those US gallon recipes into UK gallon ones.

This is the one that I use: http://web2.airmail.net/sgross/fermcalc/FermCalcJS.html