# Vintners reserve white zinfandel



## thunder2000 (Jan 13, 2007)

I just put one of these kits together and tested the SG and it was really low. Some where around 1.04. I had to add two pounds of sugar. Now the SG is 1.08 which is just above what they where calling for when the kit was together. Has anyone tryed this kit? I was wondering if that was normal for one of these kits or if something went wrong. I could use some input please


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## smurfe (Jan 13, 2007)

I have to ask, how well did you stir the juice when you added it to the bucket and added water? What was the temp of the juice when you checked the SG? You should not have to add anything extra not included to a Wine Expert kit. They do need to be stirred very well to rehydrate the juice concentrate. 

This is a common issue new winemakers have. They don't stir it enough or mis-read the hydrometer. I have made numerous Wine Expert kits and have never had one where the starting SG was not exactly in the middle of the range listed in the directions. If there is an issue, contact your retailer for guidance or a replacement. They are guaranteed. Adding the sugar may have voided the warranty on the kit though. This will also raise the potential alcohol in the wine and throw the flavor out of balance.

Smurfe


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## thunder2000 (Jan 13, 2007)

Will it hurt to add a little sugar to bring the SG up a little bit to make it a little stronger


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## RichBrewer (Jan 14, 2007)

I had the same problem with my first kit. I got 1.060 for the gravity. I stirred it more and tried again and it was 1.090. That concentrated juice requires a lot of stirring.


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## thunder2000 (Jan 14, 2007)

OK I stirred it up ,and than I stirred some more. It says on the kit that it should have an SG of 07 and it does. Can I add to that and bring it to 09 to make it a little stronger. I want a little more than that 07 but I don't want to hurt the flavor of the wine. I have the first wine kit ever. The problem is I just started making wine. I am having fun and have only been at it since I received my first wine making kit for Christmas. Its not even done yet and I have started 8 different wines in which are all looking good but not done. To say the least I am a little green. I am addicted to the fun of it all and have been trying alot of other makers wines. Just can't wait to try my owen.


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## smurfe (Jan 14, 2007)

You can add more sugar to a kit to increase the alcohol content. It might affect the taste, it might not. For example, the Island Mist Green Apple Riesling kit. Many add extra sugar to it to boost the alcohol level up to 15% from around 9%. On a White Zin, I don't know how the flavor balance will be with higher alcohol levels. It's you kit though, so by all means experiment to you hearts content. Expect at times some failures though and it will be at your expense. I have had crappy results on a couple kits from experimenting. 

Smurfe


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## thunder2000 (Jan 14, 2007)

Well I might not have added sugar to the wine kit but while I was on the phone with my union steward. When I got off the phone the crime had already been committed. I was hoping to hear it was no big deal. They had just put another kit together and added the flavor kit together with it and it wasn't supose to be added until the last step while bottling the wine. They smoked that 45 dollar kit. I told them to wait until I got off the phone but, it was to late. I had called the wine supply place to ask for sure and found out. What are you going to do.


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## smurfe (Jan 14, 2007)

thunder2000 said:


> Well I might not have added sugar to the wine kit but while I was on the phone with my union steward. When I got off the phone the crime had already been committed. I was hoping to hear it was no big deal. They had just put another kit together and added the flavor kit together with it and it wasn't supose to be added until the last step while bottling the wine. They smoked that 45 dollar kit. I told them to wait until I got off the phone but, it was to late. I had called the wine supply place to ask for sure and found out. What are you going to do.



So they added the F pack to the initial Must? Did they add all of the other packets as well? If they just added the smaller foil bag, you could still ferment it. What is the SG? What the small bag is for is to back sweeten the wine after fermentation is done with varietal juice to keep the flavors in line. You could still ferment this wine and back sweeten with a sugar mixture after you stabilize if they didn't dump the sorbate pack in. You are not going to have white zin but you might have a wine to drink. 

If the Sorbate pack was dumped in, you might as well dump it. If the Sulfite pack was dumped in I am not sure as I don't know what the equivalents of the sulfite pack is. If it is 1 tsp per gallon you would be OK, just let it set for 24 hours before yeast is added and get some more to use when stabilizing. The sorbate will prohibit the yeast from fermentation though.

Smurfe


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## thunder2000 (Jan 14, 2007)

The Foil Pack Was Added To The Peach Apricot Chardonnay. It Was An Island Mist By Winexpert. That Was All Yhey Added To It. Are You Familliar With This Type Kit. I Was Hoping We Could Save It. To Make It More Clear Juice From Kit,water,foil Pack From Kit (i Think The F - Pack) . The Packs That Have Not Been Added Are #2 Patassium Metabislphite,#3 Potassium Sorbate,#4 Isinglass Ichtyocolle. Are We Alright?


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## smurfe (Jan 14, 2007)

Well, I have never made a Mist kit. I can't tell you for sure what it is going to turn out like. The F Pack is to sweeten the wine after it is stabilized as it will ferment to dry. If you haven't tossed it yet and have the carboy space to experiment then let it ride out its fermentation. When it is done fermenting and it is time to stabilize, follow the directions and stabilize and degass. 

Give it a taste. It is going to be dry more than likely. You can then experiment with back sweetening to see if it is something you will drink. If not, you can toss it. All it is going to cost you extra is a bag of sugar to make the sugar mixture to back sweeten. Or you could use some Wine Conditioner which is basically a sugar solution. Some sweeten before adding the clearing agent, some wait until they are ready to bottle. Some wines will cloud up when sweetened. Some wont.

Like I said, I don't know what you are going to end up with but it might turn out to be something drinkable. It is not going to turn out like it is supposed to though. If you are wanting the particular characteristics of that wine kit and won't be happy with anything else, all I can say is dump it and live and learn. I can't stress the need to follow the directions to the "T" until you have a few batches under your belt (this includes everyone involed in the process, beat them with your spoon), use the proper equipment to make the kit, have done some research on overall wine making and have a grasp of what might happen or what will happen if you modify a kit. 

Good Luck and continue to ask questions as needed.

Smurfe


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## cpfan (Jan 14, 2007)

thunder2000 said:


> The Foil Pack Was Added To The Peach Apricot Chardonnay. It Was An Island Mist By Winexpert. That Was All Yhey Added To It. Are You Familliar With This Type Kit. I Was Hoping We Could Save It. To Make It More Clear Juice From Kit,water,foil Pack From Kit (i Think The F - Pack) . The Packs That Have Not Been Added Are #2 Patassium Metabislphite,#3 Potassium Sorbate,#4 Isinglass Ichtyocolle. Are We Alright?



The wine will probably ferment just fine, possibly a little slower because of sorbate in the 'F' pack. I haven't done this, but many others have done it DELIBERATELY.

The 'problem' is that the kit is designed to finish sweet. I think that kit is about a '5' on the sweetness scale used in BC/Ontario. This one will finish slightly higher in alcohol, but will be dry. They may wish to add wine conditioner towards the end to add back the sweetness. Good news? Yep, it's a major opportunity for taste testing!!!

Steve


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## smurfe (Jan 14, 2007)

Do the F packs have added Sorbate in them? I didn't know. I always thought there were just reserved juice from the concentrate. 

Smurfe


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## cpfan (Jan 14, 2007)

QUOTE=smurfe;937]Do the F packs have added Sorbate in them? I didn't know. I always thought there were just reserved juice from the concentrate. 

Smurfe [/QUOTE]
Smurfe:

'Reserved juice from the concentrate' interesting phrase

The F pack in a mist wine kit contains sugar & fruit flavour. Don't think there is any juice or concentrate. Afaik, the F packs also contain sorbate. From comments on the winepress forum, the Island Mist ones definitely do. 

The F pack in 'regular' kits varies depending on the product. Some contain a simple sugar solution like wine conditioner (generally 4-week kits like a White Zin). Some packs are more like Suss Reserve, ie they contain grape juice. This is usually a 6-week premium kit like Riesling or Gewurztraminer. Not sure if they contain sorbate.

Steve


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## smurfe (Jan 14, 2007)

LOL, OK. I thought the F-Packs were the same juice as the concentrate, just extra juice to sweeten with at the end. Lets put it that way. 

Smurfe


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