sweetening Wines

[seminarian]

i have two batches of wine a Vintners Harvest Raspberry and a MM Cabernet Sauvignon that I want to sweeten before I bottle in a couple of weeks. The Raspberry calls for addition of Wine conditioner, but I have read that this stuff is not good to add to wine as it gives it an off taste. The Raspberry is for my 87 year old mother and she wants it sweet. The Cabernet is for my wife and I and we like a sweeter wine, but not a killer sweet wine. I also want to only sweeten 3/4 of this batch as I want to bottle about 1/4 for gifts and such

So my questions 1 - when do I sweeten before bottling? 2 - how much sugar syrup do I need to add to sweeten 3 - how long before bottling do I need to do this 3- do I still add the clearing agents from the MM to clear the wine and when 4 - how do I sweeten the 3/4 of the MM and leave the 1/4 dry

Any help for this new wine maker would be greatly appreciated.

 

[Wade E]

I personally like to sweeten my wines before I clear them as sometimes it will cloud up the batch. As for how much, thats a personal preference. [To make a simple syrup all you do is boil 1 cup of water and then add 2 cups of sugar making sure it dissolves completely. You will most likely need to dble or triple this for 2 batches. As for the Raspberry you are going to need to get another smaller vessel like a 1500ml or 750ml wine bottle with #3 bung and airlock to extract some wine so as to fit the extar volume you are adding with the siple syrup. As for the Cab, you are going to need a gallon jug and #8 bung w/ airlock to store the wine you want to keep dry and then add the simple syrup. Both of these you will want to sweeten to taste. The best way to do this is to extract a certain amount, sweeten it to taste measuring how much syrup you use and then determine how much wine you have to sweeten and multiply the syrup by that # and add it to your wine. Hope that helps. You could sweeten afetr cleared but be warned that sometimes it does cloud up the wine and then you will have to wait for the wine to clear again.

 

[hannabarn]

As usual, Wade is exactly right. I recently back sweetened after clearing and now I am waiting for the wine to clear again and it is taking its' own sweet time!

 

[Tom]

As usual, Wade is exactly right. I recently back sweetened after clearing and now I am waiting for the wine to clear again and it is taking its' own sweet time!

No pun intended??
"and it is taking its' own sweet time!"

 

[hannabarn]

I saw that after I posted it and I knew someone would pick up on it!!