Overly sweet elderflower wine

[Seaside brew]

Good morning people... I made a 2 gallon batch of elderflower wine mid may. Tried a bottle yesterday. It’s too sweet for my taste. It did finish a bit high. I’m going to blend some with a blackberry and elderberry wine I’ve got fermenting at the moment once it’s done but I was wondering if anyone who’s had a similar experience has tried blending an over sweet wine with a turbo cider?? Using it to back sweeten and hopefully make a boring t.c a bit more interesting?

 

[kelper]

Out of interest, what were your OG and FGs?

 

[Seaside brew]

I have got it written down somewhere but from memory it started 1.110 and finished about 1.000

 

[Seaside brew]

I know this would benefit from being left longer to mature but that sweetness ain’t going to change surely?

 

[kelper]

Wines should ferment down to 0.995 or lower and, yes, that reduces the sweetness.

 

[Seaside brew]

Yeah I figured as much. So what’s your thoughts on mixing a small amount of it with some t.c? I’d like not to waste all of it if I can do something with it or do you thing it would just end up like zooked up tramp juice?

 

[kelper]

If you place it somewhere warm the fermentation might restart. Or have you added wine stabiliser? I would repitch and hopefully ferment out that sugar. You are at 14% so need an alcohol tolerant yeast to go any further.

 

[Seaside brew]

I did use a stabilizer yeah and it’s been bottled for a while now. It’s a shame because it’s cleared lovely and is quite a nice drink other then it being way to sweet for my liking.

 

[kelper]

Dilute it with gin. Or tonic water. Or both.

 

[Seaside brew]

Ok mate thanks for the advice, I’ll give that a go. Got nothing to loose in trying it

 

[kelper]

If you eat some strawberries first (or any sweet fruit) it will taste much drier - try it, you be surprised.

 

[Seaside brew]

Awesome. I'll definitely try that. Gin and wine mixer might be a bit heavy even for me and I do like a drink!! Forgive me if I'm talking nonsense but would it be possible to stick it back in a d.j and repitch some more yeast or would the stabilizer stop it kicking off again?

 

[kelper]

It might work, depends how much stabilser was 'used up' killing the yeast. Worth a try and nothing to lose.

 

[Seaside brew]

Yeah I might well give it a bash once I've racked the blackberry and elder off into my two empty d.j as you say I've nothing to loose. I can't see me being able to do much else with it as it is other then what you have already suggested

 

[kelper]

Have you got some alcohol tolerant yeast?

 

[Seaside brew]

No I haven't at the moment can you recommend one?

 

[kelper]

Not really, I have only needed one once. There are plenty to choose from and you can order online and get it quickly.

 

[Seaside brew]

I'm paranoid and this blackberry one finishing high now. Checked the gravity this morning and it's at 1.030 after two weeks, still bubbling away quit steady though at the moment to be fair. I didn't use nutrient on ether.

 

[Seaside brew]

I'll have a Google up. I'm not in any major rush. Thanks for your input all the same

 

[kelper]

My country wines are always slow, especially towards the end. A lot of recipes would have you ferment for several months. If you still see tiny bubbles at the surface, it's still fermenting. With an OG of 1.110 ordinary yeasts will stop ar 14 or 15%.