A quick question on a WOW..

[steve4520]

I've just racked my first WOW and the reading was 0992. and after the test and a little spillage the new demijohn is only full to the shoulder , now the question is can i leave it with a large air space or should i fill it up with water or a water and sugar solution..?.i've put a campden tablet in and 1/2 tsp of stabiliser in...any advise would be gratefully received. :

 

[RobWalker]

water or similar wine :thumb:

 

[steve4520]

cheers for the quick reply rob...i'll put some water in :thumb:

 

[Moley]

If you are wanting to sweeten it at all, you could top up with a sugar solution or with white grape juice.

 

[calumscott]

Sorry to hijack but I've just racked at a similar SG but not stabilised (yet)...

...I too have a big old headspace but my initial gravity was a little lower than I expected. Should I top off with grape juice to bring the ABV up a little or will that really throw the flavour profile?

 

[Moley]

If you haven't stabilised it yet, then yes, it's probably worth topping up with grape juice.

Leave it somewhere fairly warm and the yeasties should soon kick in again.

 

[calumscott]

Thanks Moley! Grape juice added to this week's shopping list... :thumb:

 

[Welshgirl]

Hi all, first of all hope you don't think I'm a numpty but I am a newbie to winemaking. Have been making tea bag wine for a couple of months and am well impressed. Then I found the wow recipe...well what a mad fermentation. It seems a success, needs a bit of back sweetening and then they will be demolished!!!!

This is my question...I had read that people couldn't get 100% grape juice and had used white grape with peach, and then some had added apple with elderflower. I quite fancied these flavours so I bought these today, but when I came home and read the ingredients it's like 31% grape juice, and 16% apple??????

Now the thick question, does it have to be 100% grape and then you add the eg. White grape and peach?????? Would be grateful for any replies as am itching to start my new batch :hmm: thanks in advance :

 

[Moley]

No reason why you shouldn't use those juice drinks, but you would need to up the quantity.

For example, 3 litres of your grape & apple juice drink effectively gives you 1 litre of grape + half a litre of apple.

If you were using white or red grape plus something like a cranberry or blueberry juice drink, those may only be 25% juice but they are packed with flavour so 1 carton is quite sufficient.

 

[Welshgirl]

Cheers for the reply, so perhaps I would be better off sticking with one carton of pure grape juice and then adding the apple and elderflower to it. Just wondering tho...if I did make it from the two cartons I bought today would it be a nice one and would would the strength be - do you think it would be similar alcohol wise to the original wow wine???? :

 

[Moley]

If you made from those cartons I am sure you would get something quite drinkable, if maybe a bit light on body.

As to alcohol content, most carton juices and juice drinks have similar sugar levels so it's never going to deviate too far from a standard WOW.

If you wanted to retain more of a fruit flavour, or those elderflowers, your best bet is to start the wine off with just the grape juice, sugar and powders, reduce the water volume slightly, and then to add the second juice carton after a week or so.

 

[Welshgirl]

Many thanks for the reply and the advice. Think I will try adding the elderflower after a week or so like you said. You guys are so informative and thanks for sharing all your tips. Got to say just been sipping my wow which I racked on Saturday...initially I thought it was quite dry but after a few days its really nice. I love this homebrew lark, the only prob is that I'm turning into an alcy lol :drunk:

 

[Moley]

Got to say just been sipping my wow which I racked on Saturday...initially I thought it was quite dry but after a few days its really nice.

As the initial harshness fades away any added or residual sugars show through, which is why it can be a mistake to back-sweeten too soon as you might overdo it. Give your wines a chance though, if a few days makes a difference, wait and see what a couple of months does for them. Make it faster than you can drink it and get some stocks laid down.

I love this homebrew lark, the only prob is that I'm turning into an alcy

That is the flip side. If you are buying wines, even at 3-for-a-tenner, you might have a bottle between you but maybe not every night. When you can make your own for 50-60p a bottle cost ceases to be an issue, and when you've got those stocks laid down it becomes far too easy to just go and grab a bottle, or maybe a bottle each, every night of the week. My daughter was convinced I was an alcoholic, I couldn't remember the last time I didn't have a drink and my weight had been gradually creeping on. I proved my daughter wrong by taking a month completely off the booze and have now cut my consumption to no more than half a bottle, and not every night. I've lost 2 stones in weight and 6" off my belly in 10 weeks.

 

[Welshgirl]

Well done on the weight loss. Fab!!!! I restrict myself to only weekends, only on a school night if I've had a really bad day lol :nah: it's easily done tho, especially when it's there all the time, and when it's nicer than most of the shop bought ones :

 

[stevie1556]

So true what you're saying, that if it's there you drink it. I've never been a big drinker, but when I do drink I do drink a lot. However, since my first 3 wines were bottled I've noticed I've been drinking more regularly! Started to give a few bottles away just to make sure don't start drinking too much!