National Homebrew Club Ireland

Brewing Discussions => Cider, Perry, Wine & Mead => Topic started by: Greg2013 on March 06, 2013, 05:44:37 PM

Title: Sweet White Wine.
Post by: Greg2013 on March 06, 2013, 05:44:37 PM
Ok i am looking for a wine kit that will produce a sweet white wine of good quality. Its for some relations and they prefer the wine on the sweet side ;D
Title: Re: Sweet White Wine.
Post by: Greg2013 on March 09, 2013, 05:08:41 PM
14 views and no answers lads? ::)
Title: Re: Sweet White Wine.
Post by: Ciderhead on March 09, 2013, 05:18:38 PM
you need to use brand new buckets for wine, you cannot use beer buckets and vice versa, the australian blend are ok and good to cut your teeth on
Title: Re: Sweet White Wine.
Post by: Greg2013 on March 09, 2013, 07:20:59 PM
Thanks ciderhead will not be doing it for a while anyway.
Title: Re: Sweet White Wine.
Post by: Will_D on March 09, 2013, 07:59:43 PM
QuoteOk i am looking for a wine kit that will produce a sweet white wine of good quality. Its for some relations and they prefer the wine on the sweet side ;D

Buy a kit that says "Sweet White Wine" there will be some sweetners in there that will not be fermented away.
Title: Re: Sweet White Wine.
Post by: Greg2013 on March 10, 2013, 01:21:41 AM
Indeed Tube thats probably what i will end up doing. Those wine kits are so expensive at average 40 euro for a good one. For what i want it for its a bit on the steep side but still for the right one i would.
Title: Re: Sweet White Wine.
Post by: LordEoin on March 10, 2013, 04:24:01 AM
I did the same with lidl apple juice and it turned out quite sweet. appledrop-ish and deceptively strong  ;)
Title: Re: Sweet White Wine.
Post by: Col on March 24, 2013, 08:52:38 PM
Easy White/Wine Number 1
1L Apple juice (not from concentrate)
1L White grape juice (ditto)
700g White sugar
1 tsp Nutrient
1 tsp Citric Acid
GP yeast

Dissolve sugar in 1L boiling water, cool, add to DJ along with everything else, top up to shoulder with cooled, boiled water. Top up when the initial ferment dies down, and ferment out. Rack off the sediment, and add camden tablet and half teaspoon of potassium sorbate. You can add finings after three days, or leave to clear au naturel. Then you can sweeten with sugar to whatever sweetness you want (1.000 on the hydrometer is usually enough), and sweeten further with a teaspoon of glycerine. The glycerine gives it a lovely 'Mouthfeel' as well. All for about 3 yoyos a gallon.

Title: Re: Sweet White Wine.
Post by: Will_D on March 24, 2013, 09:56:04 PM
Sorry Col but your numbers don't add up!

Cheapest Lidl/Aldi Juice ( apple or grape(white graper only found in Aldi) ) is about a 1€  a litre.

To get juice from fresh fruit is way more expensive!

A gallon is 4.5 L so we are looking at like 5€ a gallon! (Using Lidl/Aldi juice)

Or am I missing something??
Title: Re: Sweet White Wine.
Post by: Damo on March 24, 2013, 10:22:15 PM
Will

I think col's reciepe is based on 2l of juice per finished Gallon of wine.
Based on WOW'S method

Grape juice from tesco E1.09

I've done 3 batches to date:

White grape/peach and Orange juice
Red grape and apple

Both of which are tasting better by the day!

Current one is birch sap and white grape.(still fermenting)

I cant recommend this method highly enough based on results so far :)

Title: Re: Sweet White Wine.
Post by: Will_D on March 24, 2013, 10:31:28 PM
Depending on the gravity of the juice from the cartons I add between 250 and 450 gms sugar per gallon of juice. I do not add water!
Title: Re: Sweet White Wine.
Post by: Damo on March 24, 2013, 10:34:49 PM
fair point!

However, Wow's recipies are based on 1L &1L and topped up with water.

This is where the 700g of sugar comes in.

Title: Re: Sweet White Wine.
Post by: Col on March 24, 2013, 10:52:09 PM
Yes Damo, you have that right. Sometimes, less is more with juice wines - I make lots (probably too much!) of both WOW and Easy White, and I'd vouch for both of them.
Title: Re: Sweet White Wine.
Post by: Col on March 24, 2013, 10:54:03 PM
And replacing the AJ with Tropicana is also popular - I have 2 gallons of that on, but haven't tasted it yet.
Title: Re: Sweet White Wine.
Post by: Stitch on April 05, 2013, 09:39:11 AM
Quoteyou need to use brand new buckets for wine, you cannot use beer buckets and vice versa, the australian blend are ok and good to cut your teeth on

Why would you need to use new buckets??? Surely if you wash the beer bucket very well it should be ok???
Title: Re: Sweet White Wine.
Post by: Ciderhead on April 05, 2013, 09:51:27 AM
Beer buckets leave odd flavours in wines.
Go and immerse you head fully into your dry beer bucket and tell me if there is in residual.
Title: Re: Sweet White Wine.
Post by: Stitch on April 05, 2013, 10:19:42 AM
Yeah I get a smell alright but would have thought after a good cleaning that it would be ok. Obviously not. Thanks
Title: Re: Sweet White Wine.
Post by: Ciderhead on April 05, 2013, 10:40:54 AM
I know its a PITA and that why I have gone across to glass
Title: Re: Sweet White Wine.
Post by: LordEoin on April 06, 2013, 03:27:06 AM
I think glass demijohns are the business anyway.
I get sick of a wine after a gallon of it.
Been meaning to get a 10L bucket specifically for the first week of violent fermentation though, once that's over demijohns all the way  :)
Title: Re: Sweet White Wine.
Post by: Will_D on April 06, 2013, 10:24:40 AM
Why not just use two demi-johns at first. When the vigour dies down combine the two.
Simpless
Title: Re: Sweet White Wine.
Post by: DrowningManatee on April 11, 2013, 10:47:01 AM
hey guys, ive done a few wines from scratch with fresh squeezed juice and that, but im just trying to confirm that i can use any juice from lidl/aldi as long as i boil it for 30mins to get rid o the nastys?  doin a trip today and just trying to confirm before i buy, found very conflicting info perusing the other forums.... cheers!
Title: Re: Sweet White Wine.
Post by: CARA on April 11, 2013, 10:54:27 AM
Will_D's yer man. PM him
Title: Re: Sweet White Wine.
Post by: Greg2013 on April 11, 2013, 05:00:04 PM
Drowning if its store bought juice then only boil if it has preservatives in it otherwise its fine as is. Store bought juice is pre pasteurized. If no preservatives then ferment away no need to boil.
Title: Re: Sweet White Wine.
Post by: DrowningManatee on April 11, 2013, 07:12:37 PM
nice one guys, got onto will d there, he sorted me out with it, no need to boil with them anyways, sound as is as deadman said:)
Title: Re: Sweet White Wine.
Post by: LordEoin on April 13, 2013, 04:36:19 AM
QuoteWhy not just use two demi-johns at first. When the vigour dies down combine the two.
Simpless
That's what I do with juice wine, but it can be a pain in the ass when making wine from anything else.
Title: Re: Sweet White Wine.
Post by: Col on April 13, 2013, 10:11:58 AM
The only Juice I ever had trouble with was Super Valu Apple (not from concentrate). I included it in a rhubarb wine, and it flatly refused to ferment. I ended up heating the entire gallon, and then it worked (was bloody beautiful, too). The packaging said it only contained juice and ascorbic acid, so either they were telling porkies, or large quantities of ascorbic acid are yeast inhibitors. Other brands of AJ contain ascorbic acid, and I've never had a problem.
Title: Re: Sweet White Wine.
Post by: LordEoin on April 15, 2013, 04:15:15 AM
As far as I remember absorbic acid is just VitaminC and an antioxidant to keep the juice from browning, it shouldnt affect fermentation and is added to wines to give an extra bit of acidity.
Maybe just a good shake up in a bigger bottle to aerate the juice would have done it.
Title: Re: Sweet White Wine.
Post by: Col on April 15, 2013, 09:30:48 PM
Maybe. I've stuck to Aldi since, and had no probs.
Title: Re: Sweet White Wine.
Post by: Greg2013 on April 16, 2013, 10:36:37 AM
We'll I have four litres of apple and elderflower from Aldi here ready to put on. Should be interesting brew. How do ye stop yere wines from coming out so bitter? What is the preferred yeast when doing these brews?