Watermelon Wine NOT fermenting

[LAgreeneyes]

I noticed that my watermelon wine is not fermenting. I have an air lock on it but I don't see anything bubbling in the air lock. Does that mean my wine will not turn out ok? Is it too late to do anything? What should I do at this point?

 

[Loner]

Let your hydrometer tell you if it's fermenting .. Always. You can't always tell by bubbles. Can you tell us what yeast you used .. Temp and hydrometer reading. How long has it been in the fermenter ?

 

[LAgreeneyes]

Ok. Finally had a chance to take readings. Sugar was 20. Alcohol was 11%. Specific gravity was 1.180. Is that bad? Been fermenting for a week now. What do you suggest?

 

[Arne]

What was your s.g. when you started. If it has been coming down, you have been fermenting. If not, no fermentation. If it hasn't been fermenting, I would give it the smell test. Watermelon juice has a bad habit of spoiling in a hurry. Have to get the ferment going in a hurry and get enough alcohol in it to preserve it. Good luck with it, Arne.

 

[Thig]

Ok. Finally had a chance to take readings. Sugar was 20. Alcohol was 11%. Specific gravity was 1.180. Is that bad? Been fermenting for a week now. What do you suggest?

SG of 1.18 is very high, are you sure that is correct?

 

[Turock]

I agree the SG is pretty high. Watermelon is also very acidic and if you didn't adjust, this could be part of problem. Other people have commented on having trouble with this wine.

Yep, it does spoil very easily and if you have biological growth, that can cause a stuck ferment. If the ferment IS stuck, let us know and we'll tell you how to restart.

 

[LAgreeneyes]

What was your s.g. when you started. If it has been coming down, you have been fermenting. If not, no fermentation. If it hasn't been fermenting, I would give it the smell test. Watermelon juice has a bad habit of spoiling in a hurry. Have to get the ferment going in a hurry and get enough alcohol in it to preserve it. Good luck with it, Arne.

To be honest, I started the watermelon wine before I joined the forum and before I got my hydrometer, so I didn't test it.

I smelled it and it was ok. I even took a VERY little sip and it tasted like it was fermenting but still has a LONG way to go. It's in a big carboy and I don't know what to do or how to put more yeast in to stir it. That big ole' carboy is heavy.

 

[LAgreeneyes]

SG of 1.18 is very high, are you sure that is correct?

As little as I know about wine making, I thought the same thing when I saw those numbers. I have read so many posts and I was a little familiar with that number. I got scared when I say it. I was like, "OH HECK, I'm in trouble now."

The 1.18 was WAY below the 1.10. The liquid was at the 80 mark that was below the 1.10. (EX. 1.11, 1.12. 1.13........1.18). Does that explanation make sense? I should have take a pic of it to post so you all could see. I will take a pic tonight and post.

 

[LAgreeneyes]

I agree the SG is pretty high. Watermelon is also very acidic and if you didn't adjust, this could be part of problem. Other people have commented on having trouble with this wine.

Yep, it does spoil very easily and if you have biological growth, that can cause a stuck ferment. If the ferment IS stuck, let us know and we'll tell you how to restart.

Well, I think it's stuck. What do I need to do to restart? I think I have tried to restart it last week with no luck. What can I do?


I don't think I'll try this wine again. For a beginner, I am WAY out of my league on this one.

 

[Scott]

Might need to get it into a bucket to get some oxygen, don't need an airlock until racking into secondary. What temp is it at?

 

[LAgreeneyes]

Might need to get it into a bucket to get some oxygen, don't need an airlock until racking into secondary. What temp is it at?

Ok. Not sure about temps. Will check when I get home.

 

[Turock]

When I first read you were doing this under airlock, I thought that might be a pretty good idea in order to retain the volatiles. But now that it seems stuck, Scott's suggestion to get it out in a bucket or vat might be a good one.

Watermelon is quite acidic--you always need to adjust the acid Pre-ferment. Did you take a PH reading on it? You seem to make alot of wine--you really need to start taking PH readings of your musts. You need a PH meter, especially when making fruit wines. From what other people have said about watermelon, the higher acid might be part of the trouble getting the ferment going.

Another question is if you're using nutrient. A stuck ferment usually is low on nutrient and can't support yeast growth. It's always wise to divide your nutrient into 3 batches, instead of pitching it all at once.

To restart the ferment, take a quart of the wine and pour it into a bucket or similar container. This is assuming you have 5 gallons of wine. Hydrate the yeast and put in with the quart of wine. It would be nice to use Go-Ferm with the yeast if you had it, but I'm sure you don't have any. Anyway, allow the wine with the culture to sit for 15-20 minutes, then re-inoculate the wine. Add 1/3 of the nutrient now and add the other 2 batches a couple days apart.

 

[LAgreeneyes]

I'm so confused on this one, I don't know what to do. I don't have a PH meter but I can go to the wine supply store to get one today. I'm at a loss on this one. WHEW!!!

I will remember the tip about dividing into 3 batches.

I will print out your directions and see if that helps.

I hope I haven't lost this batch. I was really hoping that it would turn out ok.

 

[Scott]

Relax, a lot of helpful people here to get you through. Have you checked the temp yet?

 

[Turock]

Well, if the SG is not falling, then it's stuck. WHY it's stuck is the question. You said it had a good aroma so biological growth doesn't seem the issue. I don't know HOW acidic watermelon is as I've never made it. But one member of our wine club said it was quite acidic. And as I said, nutrient could be the issue.

If you obtained a PH meter, let us know what the PH is. As I always preach---very important to adjust acid before you begin your ferments. You'll avoid ALL SORTS of difficulties. Especially on the difficult fruits with high acid content at the start. But don't panic too much--unfortunately, we ALL have scars from mistakes we made when we were newbie winemakers. It happens to the best of us.

If you're having trouble understanding the re-inoculation of a stuck ferment, Scott Labs has a good white paper on it in their Fermentation Handbook which you can access online. I just happen to have the book because a friend who owns a winery gives me his old copies. It's a great resource on yeasts, complex nutrients,etc.