We have been asked the question if our Wine pH 2.8-4.4 test strips can be used to measure total acidity in wine. The immediate answer is no, but stick with us while we explain the difference between pH versus total acidity, and why our test strips can’t measure both.

In winemaking, there are two important measures:

  • pH
  • TA (Total Acidity)

These two measures are related, but they are not the same. We found a great explanation of the difference between pH and TA on a wine maker’s forum:

“pH is a measurement of the strength of acid, while TA is a measurement of the percent by weight of an acid. Different acids have different strengths. For example, lactic acid is not nearly as strong as strong as sulfuric acid, so if you had two one-liter samples of water and dissolved 10 grams of sulfuric acid in one and 10 grams of lactic acid in the other, they would both have the same percent of acid by weight, but the one containing sulfuric acid would have a lower pH because it’s a much stronger acid.

Grapes primarily contain tartaric and malic acid in varying proportions and, since they are not the same strength, having more of one and less of the other will have an effect on the pH of the grape juice. To further complicate matters, other compounds in the juice (potassium, for example) will counteract the acidity and change the pH. But for your purposes, even though pH and TA are not directly related, adding acid will usually lower the pH.

To put it a different way, TA affects the taste of the wine, while pH affects the stability. Both numbers are important and it’s all a balancing act.”

wine test strips, wine pH, pH test stripsThere are countless other explanations about this topic online. In fact, we found another one from Wineperspective.com that provides a similar explanation, as well as typically ranges for both parameters.

Thus, our pH 2.8-4.4 test strips will only measure pH. They will not measure Total Acidity. To measure TA, you would need to use a titration kit. Here is an example of a titration kit we found from a homebrew supplier, Northern Brewer. There are likely similar kits available from other homebrew suppliers that can be found through a quick Google search.