How to Measure Alcohol with a Hydrometer - Home Winemaking
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- čas přidán 22. 08. 2024
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This short video will describe how to read a hydrometer and calculate the percent alcohol in your wine or beer. To calculate alcohol, two key measurements must be taken. The Original Specific Gravity (OG), and the Final Gravity (FG). To take these readings, place the hydrometer in a vial of the liquid to be tested and read to the bottom of the meniscus. Correct for temperature if necessary and be sure to strain juice if it contains many solids.
OG is taken before fermentation and FG is taken after fermentation has completed.
The formula for calculating Alcohol content is (OG-FG)*131 = %Alcohol.
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Cheers,
Rick Haibach
Ive been looking through home wine videos for a few days, and specifically looking for videos that are a few years old and DONT have a catchy thumbnail or funny title or the person looks 21 years old (they are usually just aiming for views and dont massivly know what they are talking about) and your videos are perfect. I could tell after the frist 2 mins, OK, this is the guy im going to listen to. No fluff, no crap, no trying to be funny, no thinking about views or algorithms. Just pure you, and your nice genuinly pleasant personality. And its so clear that you made these videos because you thought it would be fun, and you had spare time and you thought "I know what im talking about, i know i could offer good advice, lets make some youtube videos." THANK YOU!!!!!!!
Thanks. You made it easy to understand how to use specific gravity to calculate percentage alcohol. I'm making blackberry wine.
Thanks mate I’ve started to make mead and you’ve explained well to me how to calculate cheers👍🏼
Iv just bought everything to make my wine I can't wait I love your set up I need to clear the little room out and make it only for brewing wine haha
Hello, I think I have the same hydrometer and have a LARGE 250 ml graduated cylinder for testing. I just bought a wine thief and it takes forever to fill the cylinder. I now see that they make a 100 ml cylinder and was wondering if that is the way to go. Thanks and definitely a great video, Brian
The 100ml cylinder is probably too short of it is just a standard graduated cylinder. They make something called a hydrometer test jar that is sized right for hydrometers. I have a borosilicate one that I use for maple syrup that is great. If your hydrometer came in a plastic tube you can also just use that. Some of them come in square two piece tubes now though.
I've been doing this a little over a year now. The calculation doesn't make sense to me. If you are making a high alcohol wine (lets say 15%) and it goes to something like .0094, to me that means there is enough alcohol to change the SG of the wine. SG of ethanol is .79. The true calculation should be to 1. At least to me it seems that makes sense.
So to make it clear .when you start your wine before you add yeast.you take your hydrometer reading. (Makesure) your potential alcohol level is in the measurement or it will be to much suger or not enough. Then when you add your yeast you will see it go down in alcohol on the hydrometer. This is a good thing when its done subtract the alcohol reading and thats what you have.
Yep that's basically it.
@@TheHomeWinemakingChannel thank you I made some really good apple wine for my mom out of her apple trees. 👌
What is 131 .can you please elaborate if possible
When you calculate the alcohol percent, your first gravity reading and subtract the final reading times 131=
What number does
131 represent?
In the long hand equation you have 1.05 which is the number of grams of ethanol produced per gram of carbon dioxide in the numerator and .8 which is the approximate density of ethanol in the denominator and is used to convert from alcohol by weight to alcohol by volume. When you divide those out you get 1.3125 then to convert to percentage you multiply by 100 which gives you your 131. It will be close but is still an approximation because of factors like conversion rate of your yeast and any evaporation that has occurred if you are using an open top fermenter or barrel aging. Another common shorthand calculation is original degrees brix * .55 or *.57 depending on who you talk to.
That's a constant number
We don't care what alcohol % it gets, as long as it doesn't turn to vinegar, mis-brew, explode and has some little %.
I am new to this. Day 4 of primary fermentation readings of 1.03 4% and 8. What am I waiting for before I transfer into carboys? Also what is the tool you use to extract the wine into the plastic for readings (I have been letting my cleaned hydrometer float in the plastic wine tubs for readings)
The tool is called a ‘wine thief’
When do you take your first reading, after adding your sugar and yeast (before fermentation)... Or no? Thank you
I take a reading right away to decide if I need to add any additional sugar. If you add sugar, take another reading. That will be your starting point (original gravity). I like to work in Brix anymore. If you take the original sugar content in degrees Brix and multiply by 0.57, it will give you a good idea of the potential alcohol content. It is never quite exact since different yeast strains have different conversion rates, and the yeast conversion rate also depends on oxygen contact during fermentation. It will be really close though.
more sugar means more alchohal % ?? i used less sugar...but no kick
The way I've understood how alcohol is produced:
*Yeast*eats *Sugar* and poops out *Alcohol*
You want to read to the top, not the bottom, and multiply by 131.25 to be as accurate as possible.
You want to read to the surface level of the wine AWAY from the hydrometer , as presented; not was it appears against the hydrometer, where it is higher due to surface tension.
OK so I had 1.050 waited 3 weeks after squeezing pulp in Plum wine kit cheese cloth and reached 1.020 just over 1000. Now after 2 months 999. So whats my alcohol %? I know it has alcohol because I drank average wine glass and have a nice buzz! .3 x 131.25 = 39.375?
What if I didn’t do an original reading, can I still get a finished reading?
You can get an approximate reading if you forgot to take an initial reading but only if you know how much sugar you added per litre of your solution.
I think there is a device for measuring alcohol. An alcohol refractometer. If you couldn't measure it you can estimate it. Plain juice usually is around an SG of 1.045 to 1.050. That could vary a lot. Each pound of sugar/gallon adds 46 points. So if you disolve a pound of sugar in a gal of juice you could have an SG of 1.091 to 1.096. A pound of honey adds 35 points. The SG of juice can vary depending on the sugar content of the fruit. Hope this helps.
why do you multiply 131 with og and fg ???
Why do you multiply by 131?
CN producers mix chemicals ..to increase the reading of hydrometer..but actually percentage of alcohol is less...
I want it to use it to test my sanitizers... as huge bluff is going on in this field
Plz help
if anyone knows how to characterize a sugar used in a food (cane sugar, beet sugar, saccharin? ....) please let me know.
@
The Home Winemaking Channel What is the name and size of that GIGANTIC dropper???? I can't find it anywhere!!!!
That is a "Wine Thief". I put a link in the video description to the exact one that I have. They are super handy for pulling samples from carboys and they are also super cool and make you feel like you are in some Napa Valley winery.
What if you do not know the original gravity. Is there any way to find the alcohol content?
I think there is a device for measuring alcohol. An alcohol refractometer. If you couldn't measure it you can estimate it. Plain juice usually is around an SG of 1.045 to 1.050. That could vary a lot. Each pound of sugar/gallon adds 46 points. So if you disolve a pound of sugar in a gal of juice you could have an SG of 1.091 to 1.096. A pound of honey adds 35 points. The SG of juice can vary depending on the sugar content of the fruit. Hope this helps.
Can I use it to measure %age of ethanol in sanitizer too? I would be testing store-bought sanitizer, so wouldn't know the initial gravity. If I use the alcohol %age scale, would it give accurate reading?
You could get a rough estimate if it is just rubbing alcohol with no other additives but you would need a hydrometer with a lower scale. A beer/wine hydrometer will probably sink in anything above about 30% alcohol.
Keep in mind most sanitizers won't use ethanol but use isopropyl alcohol or methanol which are both very toxic if invested. Just in case you were getting any ideas. Lol.
Do you think that the hydrometer should be added later as wine will weigh it down?
Like some droplets on the glass causing some weight? Just wondered as this is new to me and just today I ordered a hydrometer. Thanks, Brian
Probably doesn't really make a difference. The glass doesn't seem to really gather any droplets which is probably related to the surface tension. I usually pour the wine or must in second so that you don't over fill or under fill, since the hydrometer takes up a substantial volume in the tube. In some cases you can just float the hydrometer in the bucket, barrel, or carboy (if topped up high enough).
Could it be done shorter, please?
You gave more information than PhilBilly Moonshine, but your camerawork was kinda shoddy. Gotta zoom in on that scale better.
Can you take a reading if there is still yeast in the wine such as towards the end of fermentation? My wine has been fermenting for a while now much slower now and wanted to see how far along it is and make sure it's not stuck.
Yes, the hydrometer will work fine even during fermentation. As long as you put it in a test tube, the amount of CO2 will not be enough to throw the reading off. If you put it directly into a bucket or barrel that is fermenting wildly, it may read a little low, or if there are serious chunks churning around it could throw off the reading. I like to take a reading every couple days to keep track of the rate of fermentation. Usually you will not want to add any additional nutrient after about 1/2 to 2/3 of the sugar is converted.
My hydrometer reading shows below 0. Why it is so? I took the reading after 5 days . Whether the fermentation is over or the reading is wrong ?
The reading goes below 1 because alcohol has a specific gravity of .79. Water is 1. When you blend the two you get a blended specific gravity.
Wth kind of hydrometer is this? Or rather, wth kind do I have?
Mine came in a set of 3 + a thermometer. One measures 0-40, the other two 40-70 and 70-100.
The 0-40 hydrometer marks a 6 for my cherry wine, which at a 23°C equals 5,5-6,5 % alcohol according to the enclosed chart.
I call bs because two glasses of this wine feels like a glass of 40% vodka 🤦
so OG reading is done before adding sugar or after adding sugar in a liquid??? coz i am confused to add sugar while making
You will want to measure the OG before adding sugar to decide whether or not to add sugar (to increase potential alcohol). If you end up adding sugar, measure it again and this will be your actual OG for alcohol calculations.
@@TheHomeWinemakingChannel
Thank you so much
You mean, I had to check the gravity content BEFORE I even started the wine fermentation process in order to check the alcohol content after all is said and done? SHIT! I thought you just float that hydrometer in the wine and it will tell you the density and alcohol content right on the side of it. I wishtohell I knew I had to compare before and afters !!!!
It isn't that big of deal if you don't know exactly the alcohol percentage. You end up usually adjusting more by taste than actual numbers in the end. You can get a good idea with a vinometer if you don't know your original gravity. They are relatively cheap but give about a ±1% number. Or an ebulliometer which is super expensive...
So how much is the alcohol percentage of your brew???
Generally between 11.5 and 15%. The red wines will usually be in the higher end of the scale, and the white wines are normally a little lower. Depends on the grapes too. Some years they are a little higher in sugar than others.
thanks
Do you return the sample to the Carboy (every thing was sanitized prior) or use it to conduct other tests?
You can. I usually take the opportunity to taste the wine and see how it is coming along. Usually I will take a pH measurements any time I take a sample also since it is so quick and easy and so important
Best to taste and not have to worry about contamination
hydrometer to measure alcoholic
The same/or defrent to measure salt
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@@husseinalrubaie9487 كيف نحسب نسبة الكحول في الواين اذا انتهى من التخمير علما باني لم احسب النسبه اثناء التخمير
@@A.N.A8 هل قست كثافة العصير المراد تخميره قبل إضافة الخمرة
Voice clarity is poor.