# First Crack at It



## DirtyDawg10 (Mar 22, 2012)

*First Crack at Making Wine*

So after being enticed by some of Wade's wines and studying up on the forums here I will be starting my first wine kit tonight 

I went out and picked up an Advintage FC Collection 23L Blanc de St Vincent wine kit. It is a blend of Pinot Gris and Sauvignon Blanc grapes. It is dry which is what I am looking for. The kit I was originally going to do was out of stock so I went with this one because it was recommended by the shop I bought it at.

I was debating leaving out the oak chips but am not 100% sure what I will be gaining or losing from doing this. The reason I am debating it is because I got a nice discount because the oak chips were missing  Are these grapes typically "oaked" when making wine? I thought it was mostly chardonnays that were on the oakey side for white wines and the kit does say it's optional.


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## robie (Mar 22, 2012)

If the wine originally came with oak, I would suspect the blend is centered around oak. You can still buy oak chips from most LHBS.

Welcome to the forum.


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## Affe (Mar 22, 2012)

Oak chips aren't expensive, good luck with your kit!

If you're anything like me, you'll be overly anxious for the first month or two, and after that you'll have to start remembering how long it has been aging!

Be sure to start saving up those wine bottles in the mean time!


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## DirtyDawg10 (Mar 22, 2012)

So I picked up 3oz of french oak on my way home tonight. Do I add the whole bag?


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## DirtyDawg10 (Mar 22, 2012)

Light toast


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## DirtyDawg10 (Mar 22, 2012)

How much k-meta do you add to a gallon of water for sanitizing?


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## Randoneur (Mar 22, 2012)

3 Tablespoons for 1gallon of sanitizing solution. Careful, vapors are harsh. I put the items in a bucket with a half gallon of solution, wet everything, and cover with a new trash bag and let it set for 15 minutes.


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## DirtyDawg10 (Mar 22, 2012)

OK thanks...that way I can also sanitize the fermentation bucket at the same time


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## DirtyDawg10 (Mar 22, 2012)

Done and in the fermenter. SG was at 1.090. I guess I'm officially making wine. The only issue I came across with this kit is that the 23L bag of juice is very awkward with the top off because of the weight.


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## Wade E (Mar 23, 2012)

Looks like your on your way my friend. I personally dont like oak in these lighter style white wines but that is personal preference! As for how much to use if I were going to use it Id go with 1 ounce and remove when fermentation is done. You couls also wait until fermentation is done and add them after you taste it and decide then if you want to oak it.


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## DirtyDawg10 (Mar 23, 2012)

Thanks. I ended up getting in touch with Advintage to find out what oak it comes with. They said it was a 40 gram (1.5oz) bag of Perry Oak. Not sure if Perry is spelled right or not...lol. I put the whole 3oz in last night...when I get home this afternoon I'll pull half back out. Guess I should have called first 

I figured I'd try the oak since that's how it was intended...like Robie said. If I end up not liking it I could always leave it out in the future. Especially since I'm really not 100% sure what flavor the oak adds to the wine.


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## DirtyDawg10 (Mar 23, 2012)

Fermenting away in primary. I removed half the oak and put it back in the corner. Hurry up and wait!


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## Wade E (Mar 23, 2012)

Have never heard of Perry! ??? So was it 3 ou8nces or 1.5 ounces?


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## DirtyDawg10 (Mar 23, 2012)

The kit comes with a 1.5oz pack but mine was missing. I bought the 3oz pack at a local wine shop. I'm not sure if Perry was the right name because the woman I was speaking with had a heavy french Canadian accent. It may be something that sounds like that. She wasn't sure if it was French oak or not.


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## Wade E (Mar 23, 2012)

Thats right, now I remember. Huh, cant think of anything that sounds like that.


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## Brew and Wine Supply (Mar 23, 2012)

Perry....Perry....perie...parie..... french


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## DirtyDawg10 (Mar 23, 2012)

Brew and Wine Supply said:


> Perry....Perry....perie...parie..... french


 
lol...good point. I went with French oak because the juice was from France. I think I guessed right


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## Wade E (Mar 23, 2012)

That and its a much softer oak so yes I do believe you made a good decision going with French oak. Ummm, I wouldnt follow my lead on this with fermenting to dry with the oak in this though, With whites I would follow the instructions and rack off the oak when stated. If it didnt have the oak it would be ok or if it was a big red it would be ok also as they are usually much lighter on the oak then most like their reds. All the reds youve had from me actually had additional oaking then what came with the kits.


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## DirtyDawg10 (Mar 27, 2012)

SG is down to 1.036 from 1.090...it's coming along.


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## dangerdave (Mar 28, 2012)

Nice job, DD! Patience, please.


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## Wade E (Mar 28, 2012)

Holy crap, sounds like you are making wine! LOL See, it aint so hard is it. Did you get some hose yet? Id get like 15' if you didnt yet. Keep one nice and long and cut a pce just long enough to go from your racking cane down to the bottom of carboy on the floor if your going to be gravity racking.


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## DirtyDawg10 (Mar 28, 2012)

Thanks...I'm being patient  The kit tells me to check SG at day 5 and then every day after that. Seems like overkill to me. I'll probably check it again in 3 or 4 days.

I did get some tubing. I got a 6ft section for now. I can always get more when I need it. One benefit I have is there are 2 LHBS within 5min of where I work


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## DirtyDawg10 (Mar 31, 2012)

So I checked it again this morning and the SG is at 1.010

The kit says to rack it to a carboy at between 1.010 and 1.000 and it will ferment to dry in secondary. The fermentation is still going well judging by the frequency of the bubbles in the airlock. I hear horror stories of the fermentation stopping from doing this and I really would like to keep it in the primary. I'm thinking I probably should remove the oak though...or maybe not. Whatcha think?


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## diggerdan17 (Mar 31, 2012)

Go ahead and rack to secondary and remove off the oak. If you find that you want more oak you can always add cubes into the carboy after you degass and fine your wine.

Don't worry about fermentation stopping. you may see the bubbles in your airlock slow down a bit as soon as you transfer but a couple hours later it will be bubbling away again.


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## Wade E (Mar 31, 2012)

With white wine I will usually rack over when stated as I dont mind if it doesnt go bone dry, with reds Ill keep it in there until she cant go no more!!!!


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## DirtyDawg10 (Mar 31, 2012)

Racked to secondary...


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## Deezil (Mar 31, 2012)

Lookin good!

Hows it taste/smell?

You'll notice, as you do more batches, that you'll be able to taste/smell past all the Co2 and can get a sense for the character of the wine.. But it doesnt happen if you dont 'test it'


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## DirtyDawg10 (Mar 31, 2012)

It smelled very fruity and delicious...it tasted like I drank some baking soda with vinegar...lol...well it was better than that but as you mentioned it was tough to get past the CO2 on my tongue. I could tell it was going to have some good flavor eventually though. Maybe in the next racking I will be able to tell a bit better.


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## Deezil (Mar 31, 2012)

When you're sampling really early wine like this, you can always put it in some sort of plastic bottle and give it a couple good shakes before your sip - but only do it to the portion you intend on sampling 

Gets rid of some of that co2 tingle


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## DirtyDawg10 (Mar 31, 2012)

Thanks for the tip...I'll try that next time


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## Deezil (Mar 31, 2012)

I dunno why i didnt remember it earlier


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## Wade E (Mar 31, 2012)

Man, thats a sweet looking Mexican, carboy that is!!! LOL Looking good there buddy!


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## DirtyDawg10 (Mar 31, 2012)

Si senor


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## DirtyDawg10 (Apr 1, 2012)

So no worries with racking to the secondary. The fermentation process didn't skip a beat from what I can tell. I also found out that our dog loves the smell of the fermenting wine...lol...my dog is a wino.


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## Wade E (Apr 1, 2012)

I wouldnt worry with a white.


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## dangerdave (Apr 2, 2012)

DirtyDawg10 said:


> ...lol...my dog is a wino.


 
I've got one of those, too.


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## DirtyDawg10 (Apr 4, 2012)

dangerdave said:


> I've got one of those, too.





So I picked up a Fermtech wine thief today. SG is down to 0.996 very close  So are you guys sick of the updates so far? I figure if nothing else this is a great way to document my progress if I ever want to look back.


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## Wade E (Apr 4, 2012)

Dawg, we dont get sick of these and many of us do the exact same thing! This way when we get hammered and spill a glass of wine on our notebook we can at least copy and paste from here and hit print! Im betting a lot of people wish they did this earlier.


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## Deezil (Apr 4, 2012)

I've yet to stop - see Wine Log in my sig - and im coming into my 3rd season.. Started the thread before i started the wine


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## DirtyDawg10 (Apr 4, 2012)

Thanks guys! Great wine log, Deezil!


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## DirtyDawg10 (Apr 5, 2012)

I checked the SG again tonight and it was still at 0.996. I decided I would try the hydrometer with water and I also got 0.996. Does this mean the wine is dry and done fermenting?


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## Wade E (Apr 5, 2012)

Was the water at the right temp? You have to adjust for temp as they are calibrated to either 60 or 68 depending on where they came from. The paper in the tube tells you what it was calibrated to. If with adjustment or at the right temp then your sg is really at 1.004 which is still fine with a white but a little high IMO if it were a red wine.


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## DirtyDawg10 (Apr 5, 2012)

Forgot about the temp adjustment. After using the correct temp water the hydrometer reads 1.000.


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## Wade E (Apr 5, 2012)

But now what temp is the wine. I was hoping I didnt give you a bad hydrometer! LOL Dont want to pawn off my crap on people!


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## DirtyDawg10 (Apr 5, 2012)

The wine is at 65deg so no adjustment is needed from what I read. Or I guess it could be add .0005 which is next to nothing.


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## Wade E (Apr 5, 2012)

Well that means you are about as dry as Id ever want a white wine to be. You are good to go to the next step but if you are a few days ahead of sched there is no need to rush it and you can just wait until the number of days is up and proceed from there. What ever is more convenient with you really!


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## DirtyDawg10 (Apr 5, 2012)

I'll probably check the SG again tomorrow and if it is the same I'll go on to degassing and clearing.


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## Wade E (Apr 6, 2012)

Stablize it first so as to not oxidize it while degassing.


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## DirtyDawg10 (Apr 6, 2012)

Same SG again tonight (0.996) so I stabilized, degassed and added kieselsol & chitosan. Then I topped it up with some similar commercial wine because this is my first batch. By far the worst part of making wine so far is degassing. I used the back end of my plastic stirrer and it wasn't fun. My kit says degassing may take anywhere from an hour to 3 days. After about an hour I stopped because the bubbles had diminished and I didn't want to keep going for 3 days  One of the better parts of the night though was finishing off the bottle I topped up with


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## Wade E (Apr 7, 2012)

This degassing is the main reason we use vacuum pumps!!!! Its so much easier and with a gauge you will know when you are done! A drill mounted mix stir will also greatly help you in the degassing phase and when mixing it all up when starting your must! I have a an old pump that is missing a few things like the over fill bottle but Ill see what I can do to see if I can get this thing usable to either degas or at least splash rack it for you. Ill let you know if its usable by tomorrow night.


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## DirtyDawg10 (Apr 7, 2012)

Cool! Thanks...so I was taking a look online and from what I can see my wine's ABV is 12.34% does that sound right? (Starting SG=1.090 - Finishing SG=0.996)


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## DirtyDawg10 (Apr 13, 2012)

I checked my wine today and it is clearing nicely. It is a bit darker then I had imagined but it looks good. My kit says to wait 4 days for the wine to clear and then rack it (optional) or just wait 35 to 42 days to bottle it. I have decided to skip the additional racking and just let the wine clear longer. Is there any advantage to this additional racking? I was thinking opening up the wine to more possible oxygen exposure would be worse.

Also, during the degassing/clearing step it had me add k-meta. Do I add more before bottling and should I age it in the carboy longer then 42 days?


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## Wade E (Apr 13, 2012)

Just do yourself a favor and rack it off the sediment a week in advance minimum prior to when you are going to bottle it. Never attempt to bottle from a carboy with sediment as you may get 1/2 done and then disturb it and be stuck with 2.5 gallons of dirty wine and not know how to keep it at that point to clear again topped up in a vessel.


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## DirtyDawg10 (Apr 15, 2012)

Thanks for the tip Wade.

Do you usually add more k-meta before bottling?


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## DirtyDawg10 (Apr 25, 2012)

DirtyDawg10 said:


> Cool! Thanks...so I was taking a look online and from what I can see my wine's ABV is 12.34% does that sound right? (Starting SG=1.090 - Finishing SG=0.996)


 
I've gone to a few different places online to try and figure what the ABV of my first wine will be. Here's what I came up with...

Online Calculator (Brewer's Friend) - 12.34% ABV

Online formula from eHow - (1.090-0.996)1000)/7.36 = 12.77% ABV

Online Calculator (Vinter Resources) - 13% ABV

Can anyone tell me what they use to calculate ABV and which might be right? They are all fairly close but I like to be accurate and I figured you guys would have done this before and can steer me in the right direction. I looked but couldn't seem to find a sticky or recent thread about this on here. Thanks for any help you can give me.


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## DirtyDawg10 (May 1, 2012)

Racked my wine again after a successful clearing. There was quite a bit of sediment at the bottom which I assume is normal. Topped up again with a sauv blanc this time. The wine tastes fairly good. I can taste a slight hint of the oak and I figured out what the young wine taste is. The flavor is coming along and the nose is still good. Definitely will benefit from more aging though. It already has nice legs to it as well.


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## robie (May 2, 2012)

DirtyDawg10 said:


> Racked my wine again after a successful clearing. There was quite a bit of sediment at the bottom which I assume is normal. Topped up again with a sauv blanc this time. The wine tastes fairly good. I can taste a slight hint of the oak and I figured out what the young wine taste is. The flavor is coming along and the nose is still good. Definitely will benefit from more aging though. It already has nice legs to it as well.




Sounds great! It is good you have ID'ed the young wine taste, as that seems to throw a lot of new wine makers off; they sometimes think the wine is spoiled because it is so tart and green tasting. Time fixes that quite well.

For ABV calc I use -

(Beginning SG - ending SG) multiplied by 131. Not exact but close enough for home use for sure.


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## DirtyDawg10 (May 2, 2012)

Thanks Robie! I probably would have thought the wine was a bit off if I hadn't been reading on here about the young wine taste. This is definitely a great resource for info.


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## DirtyDawg10 (May 21, 2012)

After 2 months of patience here's what I ended up with...






Now I just need to get my bottles cleaned up and ready to go


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## g8keeper (May 21, 2012)

looking really good, dawg.....very nice......liquid gold......congrats....


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## Deezil (May 21, 2012)

She's gorgeous


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## DirtyDawg10 (May 21, 2012)

Thanks guys!


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## Wade E (May 21, 2012)

That looks wonderful Derek! Now once you get that bottled you need to get over here and bottle all my wine and then youll be a pro bottler with lots of bottles under your belt! LOL, I just cant get myself to bottle this stuff, even when its raining out and I cant fish I just cant get myself to get down there and do it! I really need to as Im running out of time here before I have to move!


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## DirtyDawg10 (May 22, 2012)

lol...I don't mind helping you bottle yours as long as there are some liquid payments involved


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## Wade E (May 22, 2012)

Step right over then.


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## DirtyDawg10 (May 23, 2012)

Maybe when we're done I could borrow your floor corker for a few days  I'll check the schedule and let's set something up via PM


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## Wade E (May 23, 2012)

Fine by me.


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## DirtyDawg10 (Jun 27, 2012)

It's been 3 months now since I started this batch. I'm planning on letting it bulk age for another month then add 1/4tsp of K-meta and bottle it. What I'm wondering is how do you guys add the K-meta? Do you just pour it in the carboy and stir it in or do you dissolve it in some wine first then add it?


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## Wade E (Jun 27, 2012)

Just ad 1/8th tsp if your going to bottle it right after adding it. If your going to rack the wine off sediment then just add the kmeta to the bottom of the carboy and rack onto it. If just adding to an already clear wine extract a 1/4 cup of wine or use some water and stir the kmeta into that so its dissolved and then add it to the wine.


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## Runningwolf (Jun 28, 2012)

I agree with Wade, never add meta without dissolving it in water first. If you do chances are a good part of it will not go into solution.


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## DirtyDawg10 (Jun 28, 2012)

Thanks guys! What's the reasoning behind adding only 1/8 tsp if it is bottled right away?


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## Wade E (Jun 28, 2012)

If you add 1/4 tsp right now and bottle it your S02 level may be to high and bottling it like that youll most likely taste it in every bottle. Im assuming youve already added the initial packet that came with the kit right? Thats already typically a little more then we add when we make wine from scratch.


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## DirtyDawg10 (Jun 28, 2012)

Yes...I already added the K-meta from the kit. So maybe I don't even need to add any more? For some reason I thought I read that I should add another 1/4 tsp every 4 months. That's what I was thinking of.


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## Wade E (Jun 28, 2012)

Pretty much true but I wouldnt add that and then bottle immediately. It always ends up with a sulfite taste. If you want to leave it for a few weeks after adding then you can add the whole 1/4.


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## DirtyDawg10 (Jun 28, 2012)

I'll probably do that. Add between an 1/8 and 1/4 and wait a couple more weeks then bottle. I'm not really in a rush to bottle this anyway.


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## Wade E (Jun 28, 2012)

Good, I wouldnt want your wine tasting and smelling like kmeta and it would, especially the aroma as you opened it!


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## DirtyDawg10 (Jul 21, 2012)

I added 1/8tsp of k-meta to the wine today. Gave it a taste and wasn't that pleased with it. It's only been a few months but I'm thinking I should have left the oak out. Not sure though. Probably still needs more time. I'm going to bottle this in a week or two. 

I'm wondering if I was thinking of sweetening it just slightly before I bottle it how you guys do it.


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## Wade E (Jul 21, 2012)

Im not one for oaking many whites at all and not sure how it will be oaked and sweetened. Id probably draw a small sample in a glass and sweeten that to try first.


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## DirtyDawg10 (Jul 21, 2012)

Yeah...I may be jumping the gun by sweetening it. I think it just needs more age to settle out a bit probably.


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## DirtyDawg10 (Aug 10, 2012)

Finally bottled this one today. I was able to fill 30 bottles and still have a testing glass left over. It is getting much better. The oak is finally mellowing out and fading to the background. I'm becoming more happy with this wine as time rolls on.


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## Boatboy24 (Aug 10, 2012)

Congrats. Looks delicious!


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## Wade E (Aug 10, 2012)

Looks really nice there buddy!


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## DirtyDawg10 (Aug 12, 2012)

Thanks guys!!


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## DirtyDawg10 (Aug 13, 2012)

...And here's the final product all labeled and with capsules.


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## Julie (Aug 13, 2012)

I like it, it looks good


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## Wade E (Aug 13, 2012)

You have learned well grasshopper!!!


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## DirtyDawg10 (Sep 29, 2012)

Thanks!

I popped the cork on the first bottle tonight after six months. It has balanced out very nicely. The oak has settled down even more letting the fruit become more pronounced. Very happy with it. I'll be even more happy after a few more glasses.


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## DirtyDawg10 (Oct 29, 2012)

Another month has passed and it keeps getting better. Luckily I still have about 26 bottles of it left.


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## Pumpkinman (Oct 29, 2012)

Congrats, the bottles look great!


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## DirtyDawg10 (Oct 29, 2012)

Pumpkinman said:


> Congrats, the bottles look great!


Thanks!...


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## DirtyDawg10 (Jan 20, 2013)

Well my first baby is 10 months old now and still getting better. Very happy with this wine now.


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## Wade E (Jan 21, 2013)

Glad to hear that dawg. How's all the rest doing?


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## DirtyDawg10 (Jan 21, 2013)

It's going good Wade. Thanks for asking. I'm really looking forward to that Stag's Leap. I haven't dipped into it yet thankfully. The cherry skeeter pee I made turned out awesome for an every day drinker! I'm gonna need to make some more of that real soon.

Have you made anything lately or are you fishing instead?


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## Wade E (Jan 21, 2013)

Nothing here. I still have way more then I'll ever drink in this lifetime but eventually I'll make a few more batches.


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## DirtyDawg10 (Jan 22, 2013)

I could always help you out with that problem


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