First time edvice needed - has my wine stopped fermenting?

[jpmoore40]

Hi,

This is my first time making wine and I'm 99% sure my batch has stopped fermenting (no bubbles are going through the airlock) and I should be adding the stabiliser and finings now. However I checked the specific gravity of the batch and it is showing as 1.000, and the instructions for my kit say it should stabilise at 0.990. Should I continue to leave it and check again in a couple of days? It's already been 25 days since I started it off and it should only take 7-20 days with this kit (a Young's Brew sauvignon blanc) so I figured it should be done by now. I'm pretty sure I'm reading the hydrometer correctly - I checked with water and it was showing 1.000 - however I'm not sure how rigidly I should be sticking to the instructions. I did have to leave it for a week as I was going away (and originally thought it would be finished before I went) so hoped that hasn't mucked the process up.

Any advise for a complete novice much appreciated!

Thanks

 

[Chippy_Tea]

I make the WineBuddy Sav Blanc kit regularly and it has never taken 25 days to ferment even in winter, the one i have on now i started on 27/5 and it stopped bubbling yesterday, you cannot always go by the bubbles as some FV's are not airtight but if the hydrometer is saying its not finished then give it couple more days and take another reading.

What is the temperature where you have the FV?

Is this the one you have? http://www.thehomebrewforum.co.uk/showthread.php?t=49224

 

[jpmoore40]

Thanks for your reply. It was bubbling away quite regularly then slowed right down, and by day 16 it seemed to have stopped but at that point I was just about to go away. I checked with my local brew shop and they said it would be fine (and in fact preferable) to leave it until I got back. It was at 20-22 degrees before I went away but when I got back the house was colder and the thermometer was showing 16-18 degrees. Will the fermentation pause if it gets cooler, and should I let it get back up to temperature for a couple of days before testing again?

No that wasn't the kit I used - it was a Young's Brew Definitive

Thanks

 

[Chippy_Tea]

Those temperatures shouldn't effect it, i haven't made this kit so i guess the only way to know for sure is give it another day or two and take another reading.

Give a WineBuddy kit a try next time we like it and they are on sale until fathers day - https://www.google.co.uk/url?sa=t&r...r2wRtxkVoxHpFIaZZiqWfg&bvm=bv.123664746,d.ZGg

 

[chewie]

Is this a 6 bottle kit in a demi john or a 30 bottle kit in a bucket? If its the 6 bottle kit make sure your hydrometer isn't grounding out on the bottom of the DJ, if its the 30 bottle kit can you see the hydrometer at liquid level or are you looking down at it at an angle? The meniscus will be below liquid level and this is where you need to see to get an accurate reading, this could throw your reading of by a few % points depending how steep an angle you are looking down on it from.

 

[jpmoore40]

Hi,

It's the 6 bottle kit. However I transferred a small amount into a separate tube that came with the hydrometer so it was floating freely and I could read it accurately. Also the difference between the 1.000 line and the 0.990 line is about half a cm so I'm pretty sure the reading I got was accurate.

Thanks

 

[chewie]

How does a taste test feel, if its sweet to the taste there is still sugars in the wine, if its dry then you should be good to proceed. If you prefer a sweeter wine you can also proceed, my taste prefers a wow style wine at about .994 - .996 which to me is sweet enough, everyone is different though in there taste.

 

[jpmoore40]

I decided to leave a little longer as it is still bubbling slowly and I've got the temperature back up to 22 degrees. Yesterday I measured the SG again and has dropped slightly to 0.998 but still nowwhere near the 0.990 it should be. I tried a taste test and it didn't taste particularly sweet to me, but there is still some activity. I spoke to the man in my local home brew shop as well - he was surprised it was taking so long but thought possibly the week I was away when the temperature dropped slowed things down so his suggestion was to get the temperature back up again. However it's been back at 20-22 degrees for another week now, and in total it's been active for about 31 days for a 7-20 day kit.

I'm rather confused as to what's going on to say the least!

 

[IainM]

Sometimes fermentation just takes much longer then normal, especially if the yeast wasn't in the best of condition. I have a gallon of sugar wash on at the moment, which is only half way thorough after 3 weeks at 23C, even though it had plenty of yeast nutrient, and 4tsp super wine yeast compound. The same yeast has also been really slow in everything I've done with it (WOWs, punch, TC, ginger beer). If it is still bubbling, just wait. It should still turn out ok in end.

 

[chewie]

Any wine at .990 or thereabouts is going to be dry to the taste, with yours at .998 there is still sugars in there and with it still fermenting its probably best to let it run its course as it gives you a reference point for future brews and how to tweak them , as Iain says maybe the yeast wasn't in the best of condition (always check the shelf life date) and you can always add more yeast if need be.

 

[jpmoore40]

Thanks all for your advice. It's getting really slow on the bubbles now (about 20 minutes or so between) so I will test again later today or tomorrow.

 

[Chippy_Tea]

I call mine done when i only see a bubble every couple of minutes.

 

[jpmoore40]

I measured the SG again today and it hasn't moved at all from the 0.998. The bubbles are coming through about every 25-30 minutes now and the taste isn't sweet to me, it's just the SG that seems completely wrong. I was thinking maybe I should just move on to the next step and see what happens - there's been so little change in the last two weeks there doesn't seem much point leaving it any longer

 

[chewie]

I measured the SG again today and it hasn't moved at all from the 0.998. The bubbles are coming through about every 25-30 minutes now and the taste isn't sweet to me, it's just the SG that seems completely wrong. I was thinking maybe I should just move on to the next step and see what happens - there's been so little change in the last two weeks there doesn't seem much point leaving it any longer

Just one other thing to check with your hydrometer, are you spinning it once its placed into your trial jar? Doing so will remove any air bubbles that are clinging onto the hydrometer which can (in theory) allow it to float higher than it should. If so and you are happy that the wine isn't to sweet for your palate then continue on.

At least if something is wayward its only a 6 bottle kit which although a pain still to have to flush its not a £50.00 30 bottle kit, always better to learn the various steps/stages/results as easily as possible for future refeernce/confidence in the processes involved.

 

[Chippy_Tea]

I am with chewie if you like it move on to the next step.