I have some fruit wine that I would like to bottle with a little sweetness. Recommendation is 2 per cent residual sugar. How do I calculate the correct amount of sugar to add to 6.5 gals. wine?
If it is based solely on weight, would a 8.5 lbs. / gallon be a correct weight for the wine itself? (6.5 x 8.5 = 55.25 lbs. wine)?
then 55.25 x .02 = 1.105 lbs. sugar.
woodwerks ,
I think that would do. The actual amount of sugar is probably less important than the sweetness/acidity balance anyway. You might try small amounts as bench tests at say, 1%, 2%, and 3%, just to get an idea.
Or use a hydrometer: Measure where you are now and assuming the wine is dry, you'll need to add sugar to raise the sg by about 0.007-0.008.
Pp
If you are being technical, the RS is a function of the sugar you add and the sugar that is still in the wine. You can easily have close to 1% in some wines and they may still taste dry. Others may have 0.5% and have a distinct sweetness. So, hit a specific RS by calculation, you should first test your wine for it's current RS. There are test procedures for doing this
But that aside, why? Just sweeten it to taste. Add the amount of sugar (or consider honey) that makes it taste the way you want it to taste. Then specify on the label how sweet it tastes, not the RS. Be sure to stabilize the wine so it does not start fermenting again.
Ray
I agree, experimentation is the way to go!
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