blackcurrent wine any advice

[sandy]

hi all
im trying to brew a wine using blackcurrents from my garden by following a CJJ Berry recipe im worrying about the length of time between putting in the d jon to the first racking off as the length of time sugested is 3mths what is stopping it from going to dry and therefore becoming far to strong. Any advice will be more than welcome thanks

 

[dpile1]

hi all
im trying to brew a wine using blackcurrents from my garden by following a CJJ Berry recipe im worrying about the length of time between putting in the d jon to the first racking off as the length of time sugested is 3mths what is stopping it from going to dry and therefore becoming far to strong. Any advice will be more than welcome thanks

Hi Sandy,

Thought I'd mention that because a fermented drink is dry, doesn't mean that it'll be strong.

Are you aiming for a particular alcohol level? Do you prefer sweet, dry or medium wines?

And finally, do you have a hydrometer?


Darren

 

[corby_brewer]

Most of the recipes ive seen, say the first racking should take place after 3 month. And the second after another 2 months. So the question thats got to be asked is, what was your OG?

 

[sandy]

hi darren,
i do prefer a medium/dry wine and the SG of the of the strained off fruits with the sugar is 1102 and ill be putting the yeast and nutrient into bucket later tonight cheers darren

 

[sandy]

sorry corby im new to this homebrew what is OG

 

[corby_brewer]

sorry corby im new to this homebrew what is OG

OG = original gravity.
SG = starting gravity.
FG = final gravity.
Some people use OG, others use SG, its basicly the same thing.

 

[sandy]

cheers the og is 1102

 

[dpile1]

hi darren,
i do prefer a medium/dry wine and the SG of the of the strained off fruits with the sugar is 1102 and ill be putting the yeast and nutrient into bucket later tonight cheers darren

Wow, that's a high SG level. If you were to keep an eye on the SG level every couple of days and then stop the fermentation at 1.000 (which would give you a medium tasting wine) with a campden tablet and some potassium sorbate, then you'd have an alcohol level of 13.8%.


If you were to allow the yeast to completely ferment out to dry, you'd end up with an alcohol level of, roughly, 15.2%-ish. Although your yeast may have self destructed by then

If you did allow it to ferment out to dry, then you could add a campden tablet & potassium sorbate after fermentation and back sweeten to a more medium taste - but with 15% alcohol.

Is that helpful?

Darren

 

[dpile1]

EDIT: Or you could kill the yeast at a SG of about 1.010 and have a sweet wine at an alcohol level of about 12.5%. Again using campden tablet and Potassium Sorbate.

Darren

 

[sandy]

cheers darren
so really ive got a choice dryness or alcohol content if i decide to stop the fermentation.Does natural fruits ferment at the same speed as juice (wurzels) as when ive experimented with these they have a very fast turn around

 

[dpile1]

cheers darren
so really ive got a choice dryness or alcohol content if i decide to stop the fermentation.Does natural fruits ferment at the same speed as juice (wurzels) as when ive experimented with these they have a very fast turn around

I new to this site and have only just started a Wurzel's recipe but I would say that processed juice certainly appears to ferment a lot quicker than actual fresh or picked fruit. Maybe it's the pasteurisation in the manufacturing - I'm not sure. I've been making 'country' style wines for a few years but never made anything from supermarket juice til today.

As you say really, the choice is either a sweet wine with about 12.5% alcohol, a medium with 13.5% or a really dry one with 15%.

You do have a fourth option which is that you can sweeten back to either medium or sweet or anywhere in between - but with high alcohol (like a dessert wine).

I guess for your recipe if were to ferment to medium or dry, it would take about 2-3 months.

Darren

 

[sandy]

cheers darren
youre advice is much appreciated hopefully i will have a wine thats at least drinkable

 

[dpile1]

cheers darren
youre advice is much appreciated hopefully i will have a wine thats at least drinkable

I'm sure it'll be great.

:thumb:

 

[streamer13]

I made the CJJ Berry blackcurrant wine many years ago. I didn't like it. I tried in later years with less sugar and I still couldn't drink it even after maturing it for 1 year and 2years. I stick to making jam and jelly and cordial with my blackcurrants these days.
The Berry recipes are all too sugary if you want to get a dry wine. I always just use a kilo of sugar to a gallon and you can add some towards the end of the ferment if you like a strong wine. I sometimes wonder about the Berry recipes because he talks about aiming for very high alchohol levels that you wouldn't think any of the old yeasts would ever achieve.My theory is they all liked kind of sweet sherry tastes back then.

All said I hope your blackcurrant wine is a winner. I made it dry as dry wine is my taste but to be honest I dont think Blackcurrants suit a dry taste. Maybe they are better for a sweet wine.
You've put me in the notion of trying it again and I have some more currants left and all my jam is made. I think I'll have another go. All those years ago I was too impatient and didn't always have the time to tend to it properly. I won't be using 3 and a half pounds of sugar to the gallon though. In fact I think I will try adding a litre of grape juice and cutting down on the currants.

 

[Moley]

sorry corby im new to this homebrew what is OG

OG = original gravity.
SG = starting gravity.
FG = final gravity.
Some people use OG, others use SG, its basicly the same thing.

Not quite, OG is Original Gravity, FG is Final Gravity but SG is Specific Gravity which can be measured at any time. I also sometimes set a Target Gravity.

Sandy has an OG of 1.102 but the SG will fall as fermentation progresses.

Speed of fermentation is affected by all sorts of things. Temperature is the main factor and at this time of year I would certainly anticipate first racking by week 6.

I must have made the CJJB Blackcurrant back in the dim and distant but all my notes from back then are long lost. It doesn't stick out in my memory.

There's something about the balance of nutrients and acid in a WOW which really turns the yeasties on, that one is in a league of its own.