What to do on the wine the gauntlet did not rise. Find out why homemade wine doesn't ferment
When producing homemade alcohol, you need to strictly follow the recipe so that the end result pleases you. Homemade wine is a very fastidious alcohol: both its quality and taste depend not only on the grape variety you use. All winemakers know that the most difficult and lengthy process is wine fermentation. But what to do if the wine does not ferment?
Let's look at the most common problems you may encounter and find solutions to them.
Not enough time
Very often, winemakers expect instant results, forgetting that fermentation depends on many factors - room temperature, grape variety, type of yeast, amount of sugar. There is no need to hope that your wort will start playing in 5-10 minutes.
Fungi first begin the process of reproduction and only then think about food. Typically this can take anywhere from 3-72 hours. Based on the above factors, we conclude that you need to be patient and just wait.
Low oxygen or lack of sealing
Almost every beginning winemaker faces this problem. Fermentation takes place in two stages. At the first stage, for good reproduction of yeast fungi, the presence of oxygen is important; due to its insufficient amount, the reproduction process may stop. Therefore, we first cover the vessel with gauze, and then with a water seal.
But even here everything is not so simple. A good seal is important at this stage. If a large amount of oxygen enters the vessel with the wort, the product will oxidize. Simply put, your wine will turn sour and you will no longer be able to save it. If the vessel is hermetically sealed with a water seal, it will release air bubbles.
Very often, a bottle of wort is closed with a medical glove; when carbon dioxide is released correctly, the glove will inflate, which means everything goes according to plan. To protect yourself and protect the wort from souring, the joints between the water seal can be covered with plasticine, dough or tape.
It is also worth remembering that you can open a vessel with wine only once a day for no more than 10-15 minutes, and close it hermetically again.
Temperature changes
In order for the fermentation process to start correctly, the temperature regime must be observed. It is worth knowing that yeast begins to work at positive temperatures from 10 to 30 degrees. If the temperature in the room where the wort is stored is below 10 degrees, then activation will slow down or will not occur at all. But at temperatures above 30 degrees the yeast will die.
What to do if the wine does not ferment? To avoid this situation, you need to measure the temperature of the room where the vessel with the wort will be placed. The optimal temperature for activating yeast is 15-25 degrees above zero. Next, it is advisable to maintain the initial temperature at which the wine began to sparkle and not allow changes.
If the yeast is killed by too high a temperature, then you need to add a wine starter or a portion of non-alcoholic yeast to resume fermentation.
Amount of sugar
Sugar plays a very important role in the fermentation process of wort. It is the main food for yeast and the further result depends on its quantity. It is worth knowing that if there is not enough sugar in the wort, then the yeast has nothing to process, therefore, fermentation will stop. But a large amount of it will not lead to anything good, since it will already act as a preservative and stop fermentation. Therefore, you need to find a middle ground and remember that the correct percentage of sugar content in the wort is 10-20%.
The amount of sugar can be controlled with a special device - a hydrometer. But if you don’t have one, then you can rely on your taste buds and try the wort.
So, what to do if the wine stops fermenting due to lack of sugar? If you measured the percentage of sugar with a device or tasted the wine and felt increased acidity, then you need to add 50-100 g of granulated sugar per liter of juice and stir it thoroughly.
If your wort has too thick a consistency and the amount of sugar makes it cloying, you need to dilute it with water or sour juice, but not more than 15% of the original amount of liquid.
Poor quality yeast
Unfortunately, wild strains of yeast that are found in grape skins are inherently unstable, and at any moment they can stop working, and you won’t even understand why this happened.
How to restore fermentation of homemade wine? To restart fermentation, you can use: wine starter, homemade starter, unwashed grapes or good raisins. If you want to use fresh and unwashed berries, then you will need 6 berries per 10 liters of liquid. To restore fermentation with raisins - use 20-30 g per 5 liters of liquid. Market-bought raisins are best because they are not treated with chemicals that kill yeast.
Homemade sourdough also has a very good effect, but it will take several days to prepare. But to protect yourself, you can do it in advance. Take 200 g of good raisins, 50 g of granulated sugar and pour two glasses of warm water. The vessel should be covered with gauze and placed in a warm place for 4 days. This starter can be stored in the refrigerator for 10 days.
Mold
Insidious mold is another reason why your wort will be spoiled. Mold is also a fungus, but it is quite dangerous for the human body. The ideal environment for mold growth is high humidity, high temperature, low acidity, lack of alcohol and rotten berries. Therefore, it is very important to ensure that the berries are without signs of rot. All vessels that will be used for preparing wine must be thoroughly washed and sterilized.
If your wort is already contaminated with mold, then it is best to get rid of it and not expose yourself to danger. After this, you need to thoroughly wash and sterilize the bottles so as not to contaminate the next wine material.
Some try to save the wort in the initial stages of the disease, but this does not give a 100% guarantee of success. To do this, you need to completely remove the mushrooms from the surface and strain the wine into a clean container. Be very careful not to allow mold to get into the new container.
The drink is boiled at a temperature of 75 degrees for several minutes and cooled at room temperature. Then sugar and fresh juice are added to stabilize it.
The fermentation process is complete
Wine yeast stops working and dies when the strength of the wort reaches 10-13 degrees. To increase the strength of the drink, additional alcohol is added to it, since it is impossible to achieve a higher strength naturally.
Under ideal conditions, wild yeast works for 20-30 days, while pure cultures can process all the sugar in a week.
Signs of completion of fermentation:
- no bubbles;
- the liquid does not hiss;
- the liquid became lighter;
- sediment appeared at the bottom.
The wine should not be sweet, its taste should be sour-bitter and harmonious. Use a hydrometer to measure the specific gravity of the wine. it should be 998-1010 g/dm3. All these signs indicate that you can start filtering the drink, bottle it and send it to ripen in a cool place.
After the fermentation process is complete, the drink can be sweetened in several ways.
You can simply add sugar at the following rate:
- for dry type – 20 g per 1 liter;
- liqueur – from 130 g per 1 liter;
- semi-sweet – 75 g per 1 liter;
- sweet – 120 g per 1 liter.
To ensure that it dissolves well, pour wine into a container, add the required amount of granulated sugar and stir thoroughly until completely dissolved. Pour the resulting sweet mass into a bottle of drink. After this, it should be stored in a dark and cool place at a temperature of 8-16 degrees.
- If you have a large, multi-liter container, you can use a canvas bag. Fill the bag with granulated sugar or linden honey and hang it on the neck of the vessel so that it touches the liquid and dissolves evenly.
- To sweeten very acidic wines, syrup can be used. Pour 2-3 glasses of drink into a saucepan, add sugar to taste and heat over low heat. Once the sugar has completely dissolved, reduce the heat to low and simmer for about an hour. Then cool the syrup completely and pour into the bulk of the drink.
When adding granulated sugar, be careful not to overdo it, as too much sugar can activate the yeast and turn your drink into vinegar. If you are faced with such a problem, then you need to find out what to do if the wine goes sour.
Winemaking is a whole science that requires special knowledge and patience. But by adhering to all the rules and correcting your mistakes, you will be able to enjoy your own creation, which will have an excellent and unique taste. And to improve the tasting process, find out what people drink wine with. I suggest that all novice winemakers learn how to make wine from compote.
If it wanders, it's fine. Your wine may already be ready; all other tips are in the article. I'm trying to make wine from cloudberries. I’m thinking, what will ammonia do to the wine now if it doesn’t ferment?
I will tell you why the wine does not ferment and what needs to be done to save the must. The following options are possible: 1. Not enough time has passed. Don’t expect the wine to start bubbling immediately after installing the water seal. Solution: if all conditions for preparing wine are met, wait 3-4 days and only then draw conclusions.
What to do if homemade wine stops fermenting (doesn’t ferment at all)
The most common reason why wine stops fermenting. If the wine begins to ferment at 20°C, you need to maintain this value. The optimal sugar content in the wort is 10-20%; in all other cases, the wine ferments poorly. When sugar content is low, the yeast has no product to process, so it stops.
Thick wine may not ferment. Sediment appears at the bottom of the container, the wine becomes clearer, and the water seal prevents bubbles from coming out (the glove deflates). Actions: proceed to the next stage - filter the wine and put it to maturation. I put red and black currant wine under a water seal. Thank you. About two weeks have passed since I put the wine under the water seal. I opened it today, removed the sediment, and added sugar. The wine tastes very good from one can.
Why doesn't the wine ferment?
If the wine stops playing and there are no bubbles, is it worth keeping it under a water seal? I did everything according to the recipe. Tell me what to do? I’m putting wine (blackcurrant) for the first time! I made strawberry wine according to your recipe, in 2 bottles under a water seal, I added raisins to one bottle - it didn’t seem to gurgle.
And the one with raisins is still gurgling, although another 30 days have passed. How long can he still wander and what should he do? I drained the blackcurrant wine from the remainder (it had been standing for a month), and poured it back into the clean bottle, put on the glove again, did I do it right?
Check the tightness of the glove; the wine should ripen approximately the same. Could you tell me how much for a three-liter bottle and whether the wine needs to be pasteurized before that? Hello! I put in chokeberry wine. Made wine from apples. I poured the juice into a jar, added sugar, and put on a glove. There is an incredible amount of sugar in your wine. There is a head in the bottle of plum wine, there is fermentation, everything is sealed, but the water seal that was installed a day ago does not gurgle. Why?
why doesn't the wine play????
I have already written before about plum wine (the water seal does not gurgle). I want to make dry wine, I strained the pulp, put the juice to ferment, I didn’t add sugar. Thanks for the advice - my first experience with wine))) - the apple tree at the dacha yielded 200 kg!!
I read on some forum that you need to “ventilate” the wine by removing the sediment, like putting it through a tube from a height into another container. A little earlier I started making wine from chokeberries in another bottle. Everything is just beginning there, ground chokeberry is still in its first three days. Now I’m thinking about mixing cherry plum with cherry plum.
Aerate the wine after fermentation is complete. Will the wine go sour after this? Straight into the bottle, you can add more raisins or sourdough. The seal is airtight, I checked it twice, the temperature is normal, on the same day I made apple wine, the fermentation was vigorous.
Homemade grape wine
Solution: check the tightness of the fermentation tank at the points of its connection with the water seal (glove). Therefore, it is very important to sterilize everything so as not to infect the wort with fungi. At the initial stages, you can try to cure mold in wine by removing the film and draining the wine into another container through a straw.
Now you need to wait 20 days and then strain or remove the sediment? And I made the starter from raspberries, although cloudberries are probably a berry itself with wild yeast. I set the plum wort (carrion) to ferment - on the second day there was mold (small specks). What's wrong? Maybe squeeze out the juice right away, add sugar and under the water seal? After about 45 days of quiet fermentation, 1 bottle, which did not contain raisins, stopped gurgling and I drained it from the sediment.
Homemade blue grape wine
It is located in a dark basement with t +18 degrees. What to do? Could it be that it’s already ready in one jar, but not yet in others? How long can you keep them like this and what should you do next: strain and bottle? Then you drain it into the basement for aging. Hello! I have this problem: my wine seems to have been covered with a copper basin. Summer decided to show that it is not over yet. I separated the juice from the pulp. I poured the juice into a bottle, but the pulp is still fermenting. I installed a water seal on the bottle.
Why doesn't the wine ferment? 8 possible reasons and their solution
Could this be due to the low level in the bottle (about 1/3)? But the container still needs to be replaced, or replenished to at least 2/3, otherwise at the end of fermentation (when the strength of the gas weakens) you may encounter problems.
I will soon be draining the juice from the pulp into this container, it will be about 1/2 of a bottle. Good afternoon I made it from old jam, normal, without mold, apricot jam. What to do next? I put 2 three-liter jars (September 4 and 7), both are about 2/3 filled, about 400g of sugar in each, they are in the bathroom, with the radiator on, the temperature is about 18-20, but the floor is cold.
If the situation does not improve after a few days, i.e. there will be no bubbles in the water, should I add yeast? If yes, then in what proportion? After 6 days, one was playing, then 2 days later, the second! Good afternoon We did everything according to the recipe, poured it into a 20-liter container, 75% full, added 2 kg of sugar.
Everything was fermenting and seething well, two days later we left for three days! Upon arrival, you can feel the fermentation, but not the seething! We added another 1 kg of sugar, and managed to catch the foam! 7 days have already passed and nothing has changed, although it is clear that it is fermenting - bubbles, 3 centimeters of foam. I don’t know what’s the matter; I haven’t encountered anything else besides the points stated in the article.
From the second, where there is no sugar, I took the pulp (with the smell))) and added it to the first.. 15%, and what will happen to the density of 25%? Maybe I need to dilute it and add sugar in fractions to the second container? Then put it back into the bottle, add a little sugar and a couple drops of ammonia. 10 liters of cherry plum. And the devil pulled me with this ventilation. And the taste was not bad, I tried it when I removed it from the sediment.
In most cases, homemade wine ferments for 14-35 days, after which this process gradually stops. Exact adherence to the recipe does not guarantee that homemade wine will ferment normally.
Winemaking is a very delicate branch of producing low-strength drinks, but even here there are no clear rules and technologies.
Many exclusives appeared due to deviations from the rules, so it is impossible to say exactly how long homemade wine should be fermented to get the perfect drink. But at the same time, there are some features that should be adhered to when making the drink, and it is these that we will talk about.
Features of fermentation of homemade wine
The beginning of wine production is always the selection of quality raw materials. It is carefully processed - sorted, crushed (crushed or ground), and then placed in a dark place for fermentation.
The fermentation process itself occurs due to the presence of yeast fungi in the wort, which can be natural, i.e. formed from natural products, or specially populated with the help of special wine yeasts, which can now be freely found on sale.
It is difficult to say for sure how long wine fermentation takes place. This will depend on many factors - temperature conditions, the amount of sugar in the wort, and, of course, the quality of the yeast. Typically fermentation lasts from 30 to 90 days.
Stages of fermentation (fermentation)
Conventionally, the process itself can be divided into several stages:
- primary;
- stormy;
- quiet.
The first stage is characterized by the adaptation of yeast fungi to the environment in which they find themselves. Right now they are starting to multiply very actively.
The second stage is characterized by the end of fungal proliferation. They spread throughout the wine material, beginning to provoke the process of alcohol release. In time, this period can last from ten to one hundred days.
It should be noted that the duration will depend on the planned strength of the drink, since the longer fermentation occurs, the more alcohol there is in the finished wine. In the first days, the wine material will hiss and foam strongly (this must be taken into account when choosing a container), as intense release of carbon dioxide occurs.
The number of bubbles will begin to decrease after some time, and then they will completely settle to the bottom of the container. Because of this, the process moves to the lower layers of the wine material. The length of fermentation will depend on how long the fungi have converted the sugar to alcohol.
The wine usually becomes lighter in color at the end.
Rules for supporting the fermentation process
- Regular agitation of the sediment. Otherwise, it is very difficult for fungi to reproduce. You can shake it with a wooden stick (necessarily clean) or simply by shaking the vessel.
- Ventilation of wine materials. This can “spur” slow fermentation. Just open the container with the wort for three to four hours or pour it into another container. But such an action should occur only when fermentation has entered the lower phase.
- Adding sugar. This way you can increase the strength of the wine, and, accordingly, the fermentation period. Sugar is added to the wort in small portions and stirred with a wooden stick.
- Maintaining optimal temperature. A lower or, conversely, too high temperature will contribute to the spoilage of the wort. In the first case, it will stop fermenting, and in the second, it will ferment very quickly, losing its quality and strength.
The last stage (quiet fermentation) is characterized by a small amount of active fungi and the absence of sugar, since almost all of it is processed into alcohol. It is during this phase that the taste of wine is formed. It can last from 50 to 350 days.
When the drink is really ready, it should be poured into a clean container and placed in a dark place. The storage temperature should be about 10-15 degrees.
As you can see, it is difficult to answer exactly the question of how long homemade wine ferments, since the process depends on many external factors, which may vary among winemakers located in different regions.
The wine has stopped fermenting: what to do
Sometimes it happens that even if all the rules are followed, the wine material does not ferment or fermentation stops altogether very early. What to do in this case and are there methods that will help save the wort?
Short period of fermentation of wine materials
This is actually true. If you have just placed the wort for fermentation, then you should not expect instant bubbles. It should take at least three to four days before the glove inflates.
Of course, all this will depend on the conditions in which the wine material stands. For example, fermentation will be affected by room temperature, the amount of sugar in the wort, and the type of yeast used.
Thus, before adjusting the must in any way, wait a few days, perhaps the wine is simply not fermenting yet.
Poor sealing
Another problem that many novice winemakers do not initially take into account is the lack of sealing in the container where fermentation occurs. Because of this, there will be no bubbles in the water seal and the glove will not stand up.
However, the fermentation process itself will occur, but it will not be visible, since carbon dioxide will find other ways to escape. This is also dangerous because a large amount of oxygen, which can get into the container with the wort, can spoil the wine material, turning it into sour vinegar. It will be impossible to fix this.
You can open the wine only once or twice a day maximum, for about fifteen minutes, or better yet even less, just to add sugar or remove excess foam. And after all manipulations, be sure to check the tightness between the water seal (glove) and the fermentation tank. And if your wine material does not ferment, then also check the tightness.
Fermentation temperature
Fermentation largely depends on the ambient temperature in which the wort stands. Wine yeast works at temperatures of 10-30 degrees above zero. If there is more than thirty on the thermometer, then the yeast dies, and if it is less than ten, then it goes into a dormant state.
In any case, the wort stops fermenting. The temperature recommended by experts is 15-25 degrees. It is advisable to avoid changes, as the wort reacts very poorly to this. If the place where you placed the container is too hot during the day and cold at night, then move it to more stable temperature conditions.
If the wine material has stood for even a short time at a temperature of more than thirty degrees, then be sure to add wine starter or special yeast to it, but not alcohol.
Sugar content: more or less than normal
The fermentation time of homemade wine and the normal course of fermentation are greatly influenced by the sugar content of the wine material. The most optimal percentage is 10-20%. A larger or smaller amount affects fermentation in a negative way.
If there is not enough sugar, then fermentation may stop due to lack of work for the yeast, and if there is too much sugar, then the yeast will simply stop working, since the sugar becomes a preservative. You can check the optimal amount with a hydrometer or simply by taste.
It should be noted that fermentation can also be affected by the density of the wort. This can happen if it is based on fruit and berry raw materials that are poorly filtered. Thick wort may not ferment. This issue can be solved by adding juice or water (about 15% of the total volume).
Unsuitable yeast
If you are using wild strains of yeast, then you need to know in advance that this is the most unstable type of yeast that can stop working even for no apparent reason.
If this happens, then you need to add one of the following products to the wine material:
- homemade sourdough;
- grape berries, unwashed and crushed (5-6 pieces are enough for 10 liters);
- grape fruits can be replaced with raisins (20-30 g per 5 liters);
- special wine yeast.
The appearance of mold
If mold has formed in a standing wine material, it will be very difficult to save it. At the initial stages, you can still remove the layer of mold and pour the wort into a clean container.
However, you need to monitor the cleanliness of the containers from the very beginning and use only sterilized containers for fermentation.
End of fermentation process
This is the harmonious end of the yeast's work, when all the sugar is converted into alcohol. In terms of time, it takes about 14-35 days for homemade wine. If you want to get a stronger wine, then you need to add strong alcohol to it, since usually such a drink is not very strong.
Temperature conditions during fermentation
Now we should consider how many days it takes for wine to ferment at a certain ambient temperature.
- The wine will ferment for twenty days at a temperature of 10-14 degrees.
- It will ferment for ten days if the external temperature is 15-18 degrees.
- Seven days of fermentation at a temperature of 20 degrees.
It should be noted that for white wines the optimal temperature regime can be considered 14-18 degrees, and for rosé and red wines – 18-22 degrees.
In order not to miss the fermentation time of homemade wine or not to pour out the prepared wort, you need to adhere to the following rules:
- all raw materials must be well sorted, without rotten specimens;
- It is advisable to sterilize containers before use and dry them well;
- fruits should be chosen that are ripe and sweet (with the rare exception of fruits that are not sugary in nature);
- It is not recommended to store finished wine and fermenting wort near products with strong odors, as well as sour ones; avoid contact with animals and birds, as it can deteriorate both in taste and smell.
Now you know the period of fermentation of homemade wine under different environmental temperature conditions, as well as how the fermentation process is affected by the conditions of laying the wine material. Follow all the recommendations indicated in the article, and your wine will always be the most delicious!
When obtaining wine during processing, several types of fermentation can occur:
Fermentation conditions
The winemaker should take care that alcoholic fermentation begins as quickly as possible and that all other fermentation in the prepared wort ceases. It requires the right temperature and enough food for the yeast to start.
Why does the rate of reproduction of wine fungi depend on the correct temperature? At excessively high temperatures, they go into a depressed state, reproduce poorly, and organisms that are not necessary for the winemaker develop. Practice shows that when adding a sufficient amount of cultivated wine yeast to the wort, it is better to maintain the temperature of the liquid within 20-25°C without fear of creating favorable conditions for wine pests. When the wine is fermented without adding or when an insufficient amount of spores is added, the heating of the must should be limited to 18-20°C. When these parameters are lowered, the work of wine yeast slows down and other types of fermentation are started. Therefore, if the wine If prepared during the cold period, it should be kept in a heated room away from heating sources, protected from drafts and sunlight. You should also protect the wort from temperature changes when the yeast goes from active life to a depressed state.
The presence of food is the second condition for fermentation. Usually, sugar is always available in the amount necessary to start fermentation, even if the wort is highly diluted with water. To properly start fermentation and bring it to completion, you can add a small amount of ammonia to the wine, which promotes the growth of yeast. Usually it is added at the rate of 0.2-0.3 g per 1 liter of wort. To maintain the vital activity of bacteria during the fermentation process, sugar is added in portions in the required amount 2-3 times. How much to add is determined based on the sugar content of the raw materials.
Errors that prevent normal wine fermentation
Exact adherence to the recipe cannot guarantee normal fermentation of the wort. There are situations when wine that has begun to ferment suddenly stops the process of processing alcohol. This is possible in the following cases.
If too cooled water was added to the wort, it will turn out very cold and the fermentation process will not begin. To start the process, you should heat part of the liquid, bringing it to a temperature of 40-50°C and add it to the main mass. Achieve an increase in the temperature of the supplied wine to 18-20°C. In this case, if there is enough food, the yeast should start working.
A typical mistake of novice winemakers is that after installing the water seal or putting on
Using a rubber glove, the fermentation process will be immediately noticeable. After several hours of not detecting any bubbles being released or the glove being lifted, they try to activate the process in various ways. As a result of adding various activators and pouring, the resulting wine may lose a significant part of its taste. It should be remembered that yeast is living organisms and it takes time for them to begin activation; you should worry if after 3-4 days there are no signs of fermentation.
If the container is not tightly closed, the wine may oxidize. This is especially dangerous during the period when the wine begins to ferment and at the end of the process. At the initial stage, air entering the wort leads to its souring and the formation of mold in the pulp cap. During the active phase of processing, a leaky container is not so dangerous; the released carbon dioxide prevents the wine from contacting the oxygen contained in the air. At the final stage, vinegar is formed in a non-hermetically sealed container.
Violation of the temperature regime leads to the fact that at low temperatures the yeast becomes inactive, and at high temperatures they simply die. The optimal temperature is considered to be from 18 to 25°C. Therefore, when sluggish fermentation occurs, the first thing you should do is check the temperature of the supplied wort. Depending on the thermometer readings, you should cool or warm the wine. If the temperature of the wort rises above 30°C, then a new portion of wine yeast or starter culture should be added to the container with wine.
Excess or lack of sugar causes wine to ferment poorly. Why is this happening? If there is a lack of food, the yeast has no product to process; at high concentrations, sugar turns into a preservative. The optimal sugar content of the wort is considered to be from 10 to 20%. Measurements are carried out using a special hydrometer. At home, the presence of sugar is checked by taste; the wort should be moderately sweet, but not cloying. Too thick consistency of the drink prevents normal fermentation. If the wort is very sweet or thick, it should be diluted with water.
Wild yeast used by winemakers at home is quite unstable and can stop fermentation at any time, especially at the initial stage. Therefore, to carry out high-quality fermentation, you should use ready-made wine yeast or make a sufficient amount of wine starter yourself.
The appearance of mold in the wort is due to the use of rotten or self-fermenting raw materials. Wine can also be contaminated by neglecting basic sanitary standards, when dirty containers, unwashed fermentation tanks, etc. are used. In the initial stage, you can try to cure the wine by separating it from the mold, but healing cannot be guaranteed.
Reasons for stopping fermentation
The reasons why wine stops fermenting before all the sugar has been processed are usually temperature violations, anaerobiosis and improper chaptalization.
High temperature contributes to the rapid progress of the process of processing sugar into alcohol, but it also helps to stop it. There are no specific temperatures above which the yeast dies and excess unprocessed sugar remains in the wine. Why is this happening? It is generally recommended not to heat wine above 30°C. Already at this value, extremely unfavorable conditions for fermentation are created, and at 34-36°C the bacteria completely die and the wine stops fermenting. But this indicator largely depends on climatic conditions, so wild yeast can tolerate increased temperatures in different ways.
Reduced temperatures are usually used when producing white wines. This is necessary to obtain the subtle aroma inherent in these drinks. But at home, low temperatures for preparing wine lead to the fact that the yeast multiplies very weakly and their quantity in the wort is insufficient and the wine ferments poorly. This can lead to the fact that with an increase in the alcohol content in the liquid, the spores will go into a depressed state and stop multiplying and processing sugar, as a result of which fermentation will stop.
Low anaerobiosis causes yeast to experience oxygen starvation and therefore reproduce poorly. This usually happens when wine is fermented in large containers. At home, low anaerobiosis can occur in the initial stage of fermentation, after 2-3 days, when reproduction is most significant.
Excessive sugar content, oddly enough, also leads to delayed fermentation. This happens especially often when producing wine naturally with a strength of more than 10%. An increased alcohol content leads the yeast to a depressed state and completely stops fermentation, despite the high content of food supply for bacteria. The higher the sugar content in this case, the higher the risk of stopping fermentation.
Suspension of fermentation can occur when microscopic mold fungi, for example, Botrytis cinerea, which can appear on the skin of overripe grapes, enter the must. For a number of winemakers, the appearance of a small amount of this mold is a sign of grape maturity. Once in the nutrient medium, mold fungus actively develops, helps reduce the amount of wild yeast and stops fermentation.
Incorrect chaptalization (addition of sugar) may cause the process of wine production to cease. Sugar should be added to wort with low sugar content in portions, at certain intervals at the initial stage or during vigorous fermentation. The addition of sugar at the final stage leads to the fact that the yeast, already oppressed by the produced alcohol, has difficulty processing it and fermentation may stop.
Actions that will lead to resumption of fermentation
When the process slows down or stops, the first step is to agitate the sediment. If the temperature regime is not disturbed, then this is a very effective method. The fact is that the bulk of the fungi involved in fermentation settles to the bottom in the form of a dense sediment. In this case, the top layer works, and the rest of the yeast does not participate in the process. Therefore, at the final stage of fermentation, the wine should be shaken periodically or the sediment should be stirred with a wooden stick.
If wine fermentation proceeds slowly, it should be saturated with oxygen. This is achieved by blowing, pouring the wort from one container to another, or through short-term access to air, opening the container for several hours. It is recommended to carry out airing several times at the initial stage and when 5-7 percent alcohol appears in the wine.
If fermentation has stopped as a result of the temperature regime, when the liquid has cooled below the recommended parameters, the wine should be heated. To do this, the room is heated or the container is placed in more comfortable conditions. After some time, the fermentation process should resume. When the temperature rises, when all the yeast contained in the wine has died and it does not ferment, you should cool the wort to acceptable temperatures and add the required amount of new wine yeast or starter.
If the wine is severely affected by mold, then practically nothing can be done about it. In any case, it will have a putrid taste. The best option in this case would be to add the required amount of sugar and compressed yeast to obtain mash, which will be distilled into moonshine.
Stalled or stuck fermentation is a real problem in winemaking that even the most experienced winemakers face. There is almost always a solution. So, in this article we’ll figure out why homemade wine stopped fermenting, why it might not ferment well, and also what to do about it.
If an experienced winemaker who makes wine constantly and for many years tells you that he has never had problems with fermentation, then most likely he is lying to you or is not telling you something. There are a number of basic rules that need to be taken into account when setting any wine for fermentation. By following them, the likelihood of problems with fermentation is reduced to a minimum, but there are always force majeure circumstances. And if an experienced winemaker is well acquainted with the basic rules and always follows them, then he is powerless against force majeure.
To better understand the fermentation process and avoid any misunderstandings, first read articles with recipes and wines, where all winemaking processes are described in great detail.
Experienced winemakers are not frequent guests on our site. There have been smart books, specialized sites and communities for them for decades. We don’t grab stars from the sky - we are amateurs and write exclusively for amateurs. Therefore, this article will begin with an analysis of the basic rules for good fermentation, possible problems and ways to solve them. We will consider more extravagant reasons for “stuck” fermentation, which happen extremely rarely and are mainly associated with wine diseases, in another article.
Go through this list and read each item carefully. Here are the most basic reasons for “stuck” fermentation. Some problems and ways to solve them will be described not only for wild yeast, which novice winemakers often work with, but also for pure yeast cultures (hereinafter referred to as PYC).
Fermentation has not yet begun
You should not expect that active fermentation, with foam and dancing, will begin 10 minutes after extracting juice or adding ChKD. This usually takes from 3 hours if some strains of ChKD are used (in most cases with cultivated yeast, the wine begins to ferment immediately) or up to 2-3 days if it is wild yeast. Yeast, once in an environment favorable for life, first begins to multiply and only after that begins to absorb sugar. This can take a long time if something is stopping them from doing so. Therefore, the onset of fermentation strongly depends on the ambient temperature, the raw materials used, and the sugar and acid content.
What to do?
Wait 3-4 hours if CKD was introduced or up to 3-4 days if fermentation is carried out with wild yeast. If fermentation does not start, then something is wrong with the yeast or wort, which means you must first analyze the juice (find out its sugar content and acidity) and add fresh yeast or yeast starter from raisins, raspberries, etc. Read the article further.
Too little oxygen during primary fermentation
As mentioned earlier, the first couple of days the yeast spends all its energy on reproduction and only after its quantity has reached a certain mass, it begins to think about food. At this stage, yeast cells use oxygen for their replication. If you install a water seal on the fermentation tank during the period of fermentation of wine or immediately after adding ChKD to the wort, the yeast will not receive enough oxygen and their reproduction will be greatly delayed. This type of wine ferments sluggishly and there is a high risk of contamination of the wort.
What to do?
In the first days, do not install a water seal on the fermentation tank. It is better to cover the neck of the container with gauze or cloth. It will also be useful to “air” the wine before placing it under a water seal for fermentation. To do this, the wort, cleared of pulp, can be poured several times from one vessel to another, preferably from a great height, so that it is saturated with oxygen.
Difference in temperature between wort and starter
Before adding ChKD to the wort, they must be prepared (popularly “fermented”). To do this, mix a glass of water or wort, a tablespoon of sugar, and sometimes orange juice for feeding. Yeast is added to this artificial medium and wait 15-40 minutes until it is activated. After this, the starter is poured into the main wort. But if the temperature of the starter differs from the temperature of the wort by at least 5-7 o C, the yeast experiences temperature shock and, as a rule, dies. Differences in temperature can also cause fermentation to take a long time to start.
What to do?
Check that the temperature of the wort and the yeast starter are the same. To do this, it is enough to keep them in the same place for 15-30 minutes.
Yeast added early after sulfites
Before adding CHKD, it is advisable to treat all wines with sulfites (sodium bisulfite, Campden tablets, or, more simply, sulfur, SO2). Sulfites sterilize the wort, destroying all third-party microorganisms. The sulfur begins to dissipate in the air as a gas and gradually leaves the juice. This takes about 18-24 hours. After this, you can safely add CHKD and start making wine from scratch.
What to do?
After using sulfur to sterilize the juice, wait the required 24 hours and only then add yeast. At this time, the container with wine does not need to be closed, because the sulfur should come out of the juice completely. It is better to use gauze or a clean cloth.
Yeast needs nutrients
In addition to sugar, yeast, for its vital activity and replication, needs nitrogenous food, amino acids and vitamins. Grape juice, as a rule, contains all these substances in sufficient quantities. But this definitely cannot be said about fruit and berry juice. Always add yeast feed from the liquor store first if possible. You can also get by with some products from the pharmacy.
What to do?
During primary fermentation, add yeast feed from the liquor store to the wort, containing nitrogen (diammonium phosphate), vitamins, minerals, fatty acids, etc. Follow the instructions on the package carefully. In the later stages of fermentation, when the wine suddenly stops fermenting, it is better not to add such complexes, as they can become beneficial food for unwanted bacteria. It is better to get by with a pure source of diammonium phosphate (usually 1g/l). You can also add thiamine hydrochloride (25 ml per 3.5-4 liters of wine, mix well) - it can be found in pharmacies.
The wine stopped fermenting in the later stages (after a week)
The water seal is not sealed
Without a water seal, as they say, you can’t brew wine. It is necessary for the smooth removal of carbon dioxide from the fermentation tank and to prevent oxygen from entering it. The carbon dioxide released during fermentation must be removed, since its high concentration negatively affects the vital activity of yeast and can also create serious pressure inside a closed container. Constant access to oxygen can cause the development of pathogenic microorganisms that will turn your drink into vinegar or, even worse, cause wine disease.
A good factory water seal is a guarantee of stable fermentation.
A hermetically sealed water seal is an indicator and guarantee of proper fermentation. The air bubbles it produces indicate that fermentation is proceeding normally. The same thing happens with a rubber glove (an undesirable alternative to a water seal) - if it is inflated, then everything is in order. If the seal is broken, the glove will not inflate, and the water seal will not release bubbles, and you will decide that something is wrong with the fermentation process. In addition, a leaky water seal in the later stages of fermentation will allow oxygen to enter, which will cause more serious problems.
What to do?
Check the water seal for leaks. If necessary, seal the joints with silicone, plasticine or any other sealant. Remove the water seal only when necessary. Do not install a water seal during the first few days of fermentation (read previous paragraphs).
The temperature regime is not maintained
Yeast requires a constant temperature within a certain range to function. If the ambient temperature drops below 10 o C, the yeast goes into suspended animation and fermentation slows down or stops altogether. If the temperature exceeds 30 o C, wild yeast will die (some types of CKD can cope with higher temperatures). The optimal fermentation temperature for any wine, grape or fruit, is 18-24 o C.
Temperature changes are a very common problem. If in a short period of time the temperature of the wort changes by 5-7 o C, most of the yeast will die. Even greater differences can destroy the entire colony. Temperature changes are especially dangerous in the later stages of fermentation, when the concentration of alcohol already causes inconvenience to the yeast cells.
What to do?
Provide the wine with a constant temperature in the range of 18-24 o C. If the fermentation process has slowed down significantly, then it is advisable to maintain the temperature around 21 o C. If the temperature exceeds 30 o C and the yeast has died, restart fermentation.
Too much sugar
This is the bane of a novice winemaker and is one of the most common problems today. Yes, yeast converts sugar into alcohol. Yes, sugar is their main food source. But as soon as its concentration exceeds a certain maximum, the yeast reduces its activity. Sugar in this case plays the role of a preservative. When the sugar content of the wort reaches 20% (according to the hydrometer 1080-1090 g/dm3), fermentation practically stops. For the same reason, wine often stops fermenting after adding sugar. The optimal sugar content for normal wine fermentation is 10-15%.
Buy a hydrometer and always measure the sugar content of the wort - this will save you from the most common mistake of novice winemakers.
What to do?
If the sugar content of the wort exceeds 20%, it is necessary to dilute it with clean water (you can start with 15% of the total volume of the wort). The same should be done with wort that is too dense. If necessary, restart fermentation. If you are preparing dessert or liqueur wine, always add sugar in portions, on days 2, 4, 7, 10 of fermentation in equal parts, dissolving it in a small amount of fermenting wine.
Wort acidity is too high or low
Grape juice, as a rule, contains the optimal amount of acids and nutrients necessary for the normal functioning of yeast cultures. The same cannot be said about other fruits and berries, the juice of which should be prepared before fermentation. The most difficult thing for a novice winemaker is to cope with the acidity of the must. It is believed that the optimal acidity of grape must should range from 3.5 to 5.5 pH, ideally around 4 pH. If the acidity of the wort is below 3.5 pH, fermentation is greatly inhibited or may stop altogether. If this indicator is above 4 pH, there is a risk of wine disease due to other microorganisms.
What to do?
Get a pH meter. If the acidity is below the required level (pH>4), add the juice of 1-2 lemons per 3-4 liters of wine or use tartaric acid from the store. It is better to acidify apple wines with malic acid. Pear cider, the recipe for which is described in the article, cannot be acidified with citric acid. In the opposite case, when the acidity is higher than the required level (pH<3,5), вино нужно разбавлять чистой водой, пока его кислотность не достигнет нужного уровня.
Too much alcohol
It should be understood that alcohol is also a preservative. With an increase in its concentration in the wort, yeast activity decreases noticeably. When the strength of the wort reaches 12-14%, wild yeast goes into suspended animation or dies, settling to the bottom of the container in the form of a dense sediment. Determining the alcohol content of wine after rapid fermentation is quite problematic if you do not have a hydrometer and did not measure the sugar first. However, 12-14% alcohol in the drink is noticeable when tasting. Before adding sugar, always calculate how much alcohol it will produce. At least according to the average: 1 g of sugar = 0.5-0.6 ml of absolute alcohol.
What to do?
Proceed to the next stage: clarify the wine, age it and bottle it. If you want to continue experimenting and increase the strength of the wine, add alcohol-resistant ChKD.
Fermentation is over
If homemade wine is not fermenting, it may simply be ready. On average, vigorous fermentation with wild yeast takes 20 to 30 days; with CCD, fermentation can occur much faster depending on the yeast strain. However, increased ambient temperature during fermentation, as well as sufficient nutrients for the yeast, can significantly speed up the process. Under ideal conditions, fermentation can be completed within 2 weeks, and CHKD can process all the sugar in 5-7 days.
What to do?
Proceed to the next stage: drain the wine from the sediment, leave it for quiet fermentation in a cool room, and then bottle it. But before that you need to make sure that fermentation is really over. Try your wine and if it is sour and bitter, you can’t feel the sugar in it, then this is a sure sign of the end of fermentation. A hydrometer will also help. If the specific gravity of the wine is 998-1010 g/dm3, the wine is ready for clarification and bottling.
Pathogenic microorganisms have developed in the wort
Wine diseases are a complex topic that requires separate, comprehensive material. The wort may become moldy and acetic or other unwanted fermentation may be activated. In such cases, it is difficult to do anything and the wine is often simply poured out. Always use sterile equipment and wash your hands before handling wine materials. If signs of the disease were detected at the first stage, the wort can be sterilized by heating or, and then add ChKD or yeast starter.
A typical picture of a disease in homemade wine.
Restarting fermentation
If all the recommendations described above did not help, it means that the yeast died or was initially dead, and fermentation a priori could not start. In such cases, only restarting fermentation using yeast starter or CHKD will help. And since something initially went wrong with wild yeast, it’s better to go to a wine shop and get cultivated yeast. It will be more reliable this way.
In most cases, when the wine suddenly stops fermenting, and there were no prerequisites for this, it is enough to introduce the so-called killer yeast, which quickly replicates, displaces other strains, but still makes good wine. These yeasts definitely include Red Star Premier Cuvee, Red Star champagne and Lalvin EC-1118. Also, Lalvin K1-V1116 yeast (Montpellier) has proven itself to be excellent for restarting fermentation.
Before pitching yeast, the wort still needs to be corrected if one of the problems described above has been noticed. For example, if the wort is too sweet, dilute it with water; if it is not sour enough, add acid.
Before adding yeast to restart fermentation, it must be prepared. For everything to go smoothly, it’s better to work according to this algorithm:
- Prepare yeast starter from ChKD (strain recommendations above)
- sterilize a half-liter jar
- add 250 ml of clean water at a temperature of 27 o C to it
- add 1 teaspoon sugar
- 5-10 ml lemon or orange juice
- a pinch of yeast nutrients*
- 1 heaping teaspoon of yeast
- seal the neck of the jar with a cotton stopper
- leave the jar in a warm place
* instead of nutrients, you can add 0.5 teaspoon of thiamine hydrochloride, which acts as an antidepressant for yeast.
- Wait 6 hours until the yeast is strong and ready to be added to the wort.
- Pour the yeast into a large container and add 250 of the wine that has stopped fermenting.
- Wait another 6 hours and add 500 ml of wine.
- Every 6 hours, double the amount of wine added until all the wort is in the container.
This method of restarting fermentation shows good results in almost 100% of cases, because the yeast gradually gets used to the wort and easily adapts to it. If fermentation has not started after 3-6 hours, then one of the problems described above is occurring. Read the article again!
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