Tom,

I realize the importance of pH to the stability of the wine,
particularly SO2 requirements but don't understand why you don't monitor
TA as well. Everything I've read suggests that TA determines the
acidity taste by 10 to 1 over pH. In the event of a must with the pH in
the "normal" range and the TA much higher don't you risk a wine that is
too acidic tastewise. For example, I now have a Riesling-Geisenheim
blend that is almost fermented out and has a pH of 3.29 and a TA of 11.2
g/l which I think is too high so I'm inclined to lower the TA to at
least 9.0 keeping in mind that I am making an off-dry wine.

Of course the taste-test is always important but it is difficult to
sense the acidity by taste until it is fermented out somewhat.

I'd be interested in your thoughts particularly on the TA of my blend.

Cheers,

Glen Duff
---------------------


Tom S wrote:

"D. J. Gooding" wrote in message
...

I recently got a pH meter and want to use it also as a titration indicator

for

TA measurements. I would have supposed that the desired endpoint pH would

be

7.0 (neutral). However, I have found one reference that says to use 8.1 -

8.2

as the endpoint. Another reference says that it is conventional to use

8.2 in

the US and 7.0 in France. Does anyone know why? Which yields the TA that

I

really want to use?


If I remember correctly, the 8.2 pH number comes from where phenolphthalein
changes from colorless to pink.

FWIW, I haven't even bothered to measure TA on my wine/juice/must for the
past 15 years or so. I watch the pH very carefully though. That's the
number that really counts in the long term.

Tom S