Raising ABV during fermentation

[The forager]

I’ve made a wine with an OG of 1.080 using Youngs General Purpose Yeast. I’d like the ABV to be higher.

Is there a particular stage I can add more sugar to the wine and not stress the yeast out?

 

[Jeroen79]

When fermentation is at its end you can just add more sugar.

 

[The forager]

When fermentation is at its end you can just add more sugar.

Thank you. Wasn’t sure it would kick start the ferment.

 

[D the Catastrophist]

If you are trying to up the abv, you need to restart the fermentation, otherwise all you are doing is sweetening the wine. So, in general, add the extra sugar as soon as possible. Higher abv also lends itself to longer time in secondary, otherwise it just tastes 'hot'.

 

[The forager]

If you are trying to up the abv, you need to restart the fermentation, otherwise all you are doing is sweetening the wine. So, in general, add the extra sugar as soon as possible. Higher abv also lends itself to longer time in secondary, otherwise it just tastes 'hot'.

Ok. It’s currently in primary, so maybe add more now? About 5 days in.

 

[D the Catastrophist]

I would. Just be aware of what your yeasts abv tolerance is. So if it's one with a 14% abv tolerance like a 71b or a D47, you will be able to add less sugar than you would to one with a 17% abv tolerance like a K1 without making it cloyingly sweet.



Adding sugar when you are about to bottle, is a bit of a calculated risk. If your yeast is fully depleted, it may end up too sweet, if the yeasts is slightly active you may end up with a slightly higher abv and potentially a bubbly wine(which is always a nice surprise). If the yeast is too active or you bottle too quickly, you can get bottle bombs.

Ok. It’s currently in primary, so maybe add more now? About 5 days in.

 

[D the Catastrophist]

Is this the yeast you are using?

https://www.youngsgroup.co.uk/catal...purpose-white-wine-yeast-sachet-5g-511-detail
If so, it lists a 18% abv tolerance. At a starting sg of 1.080, if you ferment to 1.00 final sg, that is an abv of about 10.5%, so you should have a bit of wiggle room.

A pound of sugar will raise a gallon of waters sg by about .33, which would raise your abv to about 14.8%.

https://www.brewersfriend.com/abv-calculator/