FermCalc Enhancements

New Features in 2021

• New Sweetener Options in the Amelioration Calculator - The user can now choose between sugar, honey, or concentrate as sweetener options.
• Updated YAN Calculator Data - The yeast and nutrient data in the YAN calculator were updated based on 2020 vendor data.

New Features in 2018

• New Advanced Blending Calculator - An advanced option was added to the blending calculator that allows the user to select the property type for the calculation.  Property type options of Concentration, pH, and Specific Gravity / Density are available.

New Features in 2017

• New Yeast Assimilable Nitrogen (YAN) Calculator - The Yeast Assimilable Nitrogen (YAN) Calculator determines the yeast nutrient additions required to supply the desired YAN level in a must.  The total YAN requirement is calculated based on the nitrogen requirements of the selected yeast strain and on the initial SG of the must.  The required masses of the selected nutrients are then calculated based on their nitrogen contents.  The additions can be scheduled in stages, with up to three nutrients added in up to four stages.
• New Volume Units - The units of "Bottles (750 mL)" and "Cases (12 bottles)" have been added to the volume unit list.
• New Campden Tablet Sulfite Mass Option - The user now has the option of specifying the mass of the sulfites in their campden tablets in the Sulfite Caculator.   This is most commonly 440 mg, but 550 mg campden tablets are also common.

New Features in 2016

• FermCalc for Android - A new Android version of FermCalc is available in the Google Play and Amazon app stores.

    

• New Look and Feel for the JavaScript Calculator - The look and feel of the JavaScript Calculator is now identical to that of the Android calculator.
• Default Acidity Units - Users can now specify their preferred default acidity units for the acid titration and acidification/deacidification calculators.  These settings will be remembered the next time FermCalc is launched.
• New High Brix Measurement by Dilution Calculator - This calculator determines the SG of a high-brix liquid from a SG measurement on a diluted sample of the liquid. This is useful for determining the SG of a liquid with an SG that is outside the range of standard hydrometers and refractometers.
• New Dry Matter Calculator - This calcualtor determines the solids content of a wine from its alcohol content and specific gravity. This is intended for winemakers who determine the alcohol content of their wines by means such as distillation or ebulliometery and would like to calculate the solids content.
• New Hackbarth SG Calculator - This calculator utilizes the Hackbarth model to estimate SG from given values of alcohol content and sugar content. Its purpose is mainly to test and validate the Hackbarth calculation in FermCalc, but it is also useful in the preparation of fortified wines and liqueurs.
• New Amelioration Calculator - Amelioration is the dilution of must with water in order to reduce the acidity or sugar content.  The Amelioration Calculator determines the required additions of water, sugar, and acid to a must to meet the desired acidity and SG levels given the initial acidity and SG.
• New Potential Alcohol Calculator - The Potential Alcohol Calculator estimates the alcohol content of a wine that will result from the complete fermentation of a must with a given initial specific gravity.  Nine methods are used to estimate the potential alcohol content.

New Features in 2015

• Additional System Settings - Users can now specify their preferred default hydrometer SG units, hydrometer SG reading temperature, and hydrometer calibration temperature. These settings will be remembered the next time FermCalc is launched.
• New Fortification Point Option - Users can now override the calculated wine SG at fortification to model the impact of fortifying a fermenting wine at an SG value different from the "ideal" fortification point.
• Inverse Stock Solution Make-Up Calculation - This calculation determines the amount of a substance required to yield a stock solution such that a specific volume of the solution will result in a specific increase in concentration in a specific volume of wine.

New Features in 2014

• New Fortification Calculators - Two new fortification calculators have been added: 1) a post-fermentation fortification calculator that determines he amounts of fortifier and/or sweetener to add to a given wine to achieve the desired alcohol and sugar contents, and 2) a fortification point calculator that determines the point at which to stop an active fermentation to yield the desired level of residual sugar and the amount of fortifier to add to yield the desired alcohol level.
• Improved Hydrometer Temperature Corrections - The hydrometer temperature corrections in the alcohol content calculators now account for the presence of both ethanol and sucrose.
• New Refractometer Units - The list of refractometer reading units in the refractometer and hydrometer alcohol content calculation has been expanded to include Brix, Oechsle, Baumé, and KMW.
• New SG Unit Conversion - SG can now be converted to g/L sugar on the SG conversions panel and some of the other calculators.

New Features in 2013

• System Settings are Saved - The global Unit System and Look & Feel settings are saved for both the online and stand-alone versions of the calculator so you don't have to reset these every time you start the program.
• Improved Dry Weight/Volume Converter - The dry measures converter now works both ways. Enter a weight to estimate a volume, or enter a volume to estimate a weight.
• FermCalcJS - A New JavaScript Calculator for Mobile Devices - A new JavaScript version of FermCalc is available here. It is designed designed for mobile devices that do not support Java. The functionality and mathematics are identical to the full Java version.

New Features in 2012

• New Solids Content (True Brix) Calculation - A new method of calculating true Brix was added to the Alcohol Content by Hydrometer SG Drop calculation panel.
• New Solids Content (True Brix) Units - All true Brix results in the Alcohol Content calculations can now be reported as either % by weight or grams/liter.
• New NaOH Standardization Calculation - A new calculation panel has been added to the Acidity tab to calculate NaOH Normality from a standardization titration with KPH.

New Features in 2011

• New Alcohol Content Calculations - Several new methods of calculating alcohol content have been added to the various Alcohol Content calculation panels.
• New OIML Calculator - A new calculator for calculating alcohol content from distillate density using the OIML formula was added to the Alcohol Content calculations panel.
• Refractive Index Conversions - A new tab was added to the Conversions panel for converting between different refractometer reading units.
• Improved Consistency in Specific Gravity and Density Assumptions - All of the calculations on the Sugar and Alcohol tabs now assume a reference temperature of 20°C.
• New Specific Gravity and Acidity Units - All of the specific gravity drop-down lists now include Klosterneuburger Mostwaage (KMW), and the acidity drop down lists now include mEq/L.

New Features in 2010

• Download Option - FermCalc can now be downloaded and installed on your computer as a standalone application for offline use.
• Miscellaneous Additive Calculations - A new calculation panel was added with a dry weight to volume calculator, a stock solution calculator, and a miscellaneous additions calculator.
• Concentration Unit Conversions - A new tab was added to the Conversions panel for converting between various units of concentration.
• Concentrate Option - Concentrate was added as a sweetener option on the Sugar Requirements panel. This works just like the honey option, but specifies concentrate amounts in volumes instead of weights.
• New Deacidifier Option - Potassium Hydroxide (KOH) was added as a deacidifier option on the Acid Calculations panel.

New Features in 2009

• Honey Calculations - For the mead makers out there, honey was added as a sweetener option on the Sugar Requirements panel.
• Titration Calculations - On the Acidity Calculations panel you can now calculate titratable acidity (TA) from the results of a titration with NaOH.
• SO2 Equilibrium Constant Entry - For those who want complete control over their sulfite calculations, you can now change the SO2 equilibrium constant that's used in the calculations on the Sulfite Additions panel.
• Alcohol Content by the Hydrometer & Refractometer Method - An option to calculate alcohol content from hydrometer and refractometer readings was added to the Alcohol Content Calculations panel.
• Alcohol Content by the Boiling (Spirit Indication) Method - An option to calculate alcohol content from hydrometer readings before and after boiling off the alcohol was added to the Alcohol Content Calculations panel.
• Improved International Number Format Support - Locales that use commas instead of periods as decimals are now supported.
• Improved Documentation - The online documentation of the calculations has been expanded and improved.

© 2007-2021 Steve Gross
Last updated 11 September 2021.