Making Mulberry Wine, but not sure about primary ferment

[ericonthehill]

At first there was question to as why water should be added. After the fruit thawed I saw why. The juice from mulberries is very thick, syrup like. After the addition of both sugar and water the consistency is more like wine. The juice was as thick or even thicker then the typical syrup you put on your pancakes. I figured I'd clarify that before I get a whole bunch of questions about the water.

 

[ericonthehill]

After taking a reading at 1.050 this morning and stiring, I found a easy to use Specific Gravity Temperature Conversion Calculator online. As my primary is at 99 degrees in a 73 degree room, I knew it wasn't going to be accurate. I measured with the hydrometer and it's at 1.030 just 3 hours later! Using the website I found, It's at an actual SG of 1.034. This is my first batch of wine, and I am amazed at how quick the yeast gets to working once it gets rolling. Now it's looking like I may have more then the 6 gallon carboy I have can handle. It looks like I might have to run by Brew and Wine Supply in Hillsboro tomorrow to get an extra one.

 

[Deezil]

99 degrees? Really? Lets hope not, cause thats too warm... Even if its 79, thats kinda borderline but works for some reds..

 

[ericonthehill]

Nope it's a hair under a 100...and the yeast is working like crazy. Room temp at 74 now.

 

[Deezil]

How are you keeping it so warm?

 

[ericonthehill]

sg is at 1.020 was at 1.095 sunday night, so less then 48 hrs.

 

[ericonthehill]

I'm not. It's sitting on a chair in the garage. It has to be doing it it's self. I've only added what was required at the get go.

 

[ericonthehill]

And stirring 3 times a day, vigorously. keeping a lid on it when not.

 

[Deezil]

Holy cow

Thats really warm.. Too warm, really.. But i dont think putting it back on the concrete floor would be a good idea either.. Hrmm..

 

[ericonthehill]

Will it hurt the must? The only thing I can think of to cool it down is to strain it. It would let the air cool it down a bit, but i'm not sure how long it would stay that long. Though at 1.020 I'm getting close to my sg of 1.010 to siphon into the secondary. I'd have to do it quick though, I really don't want to expose it to oxygen as much from this point forward.

 

[ericonthehill]

I'm afraid the concrete floor is too cool and might shock the yeast. As it would make the bottom cooler then the top. And I'm sure the concrete floor is too cool and at the very least would put the yeast to sleep. Straining is the only thing I can think of...

 

[Deezil]

Yeah you dont wanna do that (strain) this close to dry, you'll risk oxidizing your wine.

It could hurt (the heat), but seeing as its the yeast driving the temp up and not environmental factors.. I dont think it'll hurt like it would if it was 100 outside and your must just had to cope with it.. I think you'll be okay.

Higher temps lead to more vigorous fermentations like you're witnessing, which can blow off the delicate aromas that some try to hold onto in "fruitier" wines (usually whites). Reds are commonly fermented in the high 70's, low 80's - which leads to better extraction of color, tannins & goodies from the fruit itself.. A bit of a give & take in this relationship.

But i guess i just had no idea that the must would reach 100 degrees all by its lonesome. I learned something today

 

[ericonthehill]

I was just thinking...I pitched the yeast saturday about noon, by midnight sunday night the sg only dropped from 1.100 where it started to 1.095. It was on the concrete floor at the time so it was working really slow. I elevated the must by setting it on a chair and the yeast took off from there. The initial 36 hrs of a cool floor and then to the elevated 73 degree room temp had to have something to do with it's progress at this point.

 

[Deezil]

Oh most definitely...

From my understanding.. Most of the time spent on the cool floor, the yeast colony was probably still trying to build its numbers... Theres a good chance that you lifted it off the cold concrete at about the same time the colony numbers maximized.

I think this is why sometimes it can take 24-48hrs for signs of fermentation, in most cases... Is because at first, the colony is working more on maximizing numbers than it is on working its way through all the sugar.

Assuming thats the case, it would explain the temp jump. If they (yeast) switched from multiplying their numbers, to working through the sugar at about the same time that you lifted it off the floor, i would think it would lead to the results that you're seeing here

Mostly assumptions and theory, loosely based on what i remember from research

 

[ericonthehill]

Sg is at 1.010! Just siphoned off into my 6 gal. carboy! I was a little worried to put the airlock on as it was kicking out the co2 pretty steady. I've heard others experience with "volcanoes" and such, but after 15 minutes I put it on and it's working like a charm to this point. I got a taste of it when I siphoned. I'm not used to the co2, but was able to see past that and it tastes good. The flavor linger for a bit, and I think if that is any indication I shoukd end up with a delicious desert wine!

 

[Boatboy24]

Sounds like you're well on your way. One thing I've been doing (I've only done 4 batches so far, mind you) after moving into secondary fermentation: I take the full carboy and place that into my clean fermenting bucket for a couple days. This way, if there is a volcano, the overflow ends up in the bucket and not on my floor. Haven't had any volcanoes yet though (knock on wood).

 

[AznDrgn]

Eric, can you post the recipe(s)/ instructions you are using? I'm collecting mulberries in my backyard as we speak and I'm thinking about trying to do a batch of wine with them. I've never done wine before but I do dabble in beer some so hopefully this won't be too different.

 

[ericonthehill]

Go to Roxanne's Wine Cellar, click on fruit wines, go to Mulberry Wine. It will actually direct you to the Blackberry Wine recipe with the only difference being 3 Campden tablets instead of 1. I changed mine a little. I used 4 gal. of distilled water instead of 5, I used 5 gal of mulberries, or 28 lbs., also i added an extra 1/2 cup of sugar from the get go. 28cups in all. Which worked well because it got my sg up to 1.100 to start with. I froze my mulberries whole seeds and stems and all, in 1 gal. freezer bags. Let them thaw in the fridge for 2 days. Placed the Mulberries in Muslin bags and tied them shut(it keeps some seeds and all the stems and skins from floating around as much). I used one packet of Lavlin K1-V1116 Follow the directions on the packet. After pitching the yeast I stirred and checked my SG frequently. Along the way I would use a small aquarium fish net to grab any seeds that found their way out of the bags. My batch made a little over 6 gal of secondary, I had some left over, maybe 1/2 gal, but no container for it to go in. Make sure you use a strainer when pressing the bags then mash with potatoe masher and twist the juice out. Siphon into secondary.

I used a mix of dark red, purple, and black mulberries. I picked most of them before they could fall, but they were ready, luckily there wasn't any wind at the time to knock them down. ANy really long stems I snipped off. But most stayed like they were thru the whole process. I used 3 buckets to start my primary, but could have used 2, 5 gal. buckets. I got them at Lowe's, it's cheaper then the wine supply buckets. Just make sure you buy their food grade buckets, lids, and get a stretch of hose for siphoning while your there.

This too is my first crack at wine making. I'm not much of a wine drinker, but like the flavor of Mulberries, and always have plenty to use. So I gave it a shot. Just so you know for a little while the primary will put off a strong odor. I believe when the sg was aroung 1.025 or so. But when siphoning I got a little taste and besides the CO2, it tasted good.

If you need anymore info let me know. Good Luck!!

 

[ericonthehill]

Almost forgot the other recipe, which I primarily used for info. Search for Making Wine from Wild Berries, it should be near the top of the search, it's an essortment page. Another note, mine is going to be a desert wine, that's why I was so pleased with the starting sg of 1.100. From my understanding, most fruit wines need to have 12% alcohol or better to best survive long periods of time. I'm hoping mine will end up a little above 13% so it doesn't fall too much with the addition of sugar.

 

[AznDrgn]

Thanks Eric!

Just have a couple quick questions. I'm collecting berries that fall and keeping the better looking ones and discarding anything that is rotten, falling apart, or just feels too mushy, will these be okay to use or would they be considered over ripe/spoiled? All the recipes I'm seeing just say to use wine yeast, from brewing beer we use different yeasts to produce different tastes is it different for wine? Do you just pick any random yeast?