WineXpert LE 15 Barbara
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Can't comment on the Eclipse kits....I've yet to make one, but I can tell you that all of the WE LE's I have made have been very good. Aging is the key!
Rob
Yep, we ordered 4 of the WE LE's this year. We're about halfway through our collection of 2013 LE's. The South African Shiraz/Cab is excellent, the Oregon pinot is the best pinot we've had from a kit so far. The Pacific Quartet wasn't bad, just too sweet for our taste, if I were to do it over I'd add the entire f-pac to the primary.
RJ's RQ has been good so far as well. We made the Nero D'Avola and the Petit Verdot. The Aglianico from last year is next in line for primary. We skipped RJ's RQ this year because nothing looked all that exciting compared to what WE and CC were offering.
We did a bunch of CC Passports last year, but they're all still bulk aging. Ordered three more for this year.
Note that most of the LE kits from WE do not have a grape pack. (It seems like only one does every year.) That having been said, I believe the grape-pack-less kits have more liquid volume, and it is reputed that they have really high-quality juice. (I don't know for sure, of course!)
In 2013/14, I decided to make two of the non-skins packs (Oregon Pinot and Wash. Cab/Merlot). In 2014/15, I made the one that did have skins, viz., the Super Tuscan. They are all young yet, but they all seemed quite high quality at their various stages. I've only had a bottle of the Oregon Pinot, which was quite nice; it was light, in a Burgundian style, as Oregon Pinots typically are.
In 2013/14, I decided to make two of the non-skins packs (Oregon Pinot and Wash. Cab/Merlot). In 2014/15, I made the one that did have skins, viz., the Super Tuscan. They are all young yet, but they all seemed quite high quality at their various stages. I've only had a bottle of the Oregon Pinot, which was quite nice; it was light, in a Burgundian style, as Oregon Pinots typically are.
Yes, with both WE and CC the ones without grape packs are 18L of juice, the ones with the grape packs are 16L juice + skin pack.
We skipped WE LE for 14/15 due to the price fixing fiasco not being sorted out at the time. Thankfully Label Peelers solved that issue in time for this years LE's.
We made the Wash. cab/merlot as well, but haven't tried a bottle yet. That gives me an idea
I feel the need to update my previous statement. Last years CC Passport Series were definitely 18L without skins and 16L with skins. The Vineco site lists this years Passport as 18L as well. I didn't order any WE last year, so I can't say for sure, and their website doesn't list sizes. Can anyone confirm the actual kit sizes for this years WE limited releases?
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I've never seen a WineXpert ad that stated that the LE kits were as good as the Eclipse kits. I am willing to go out on a short limb, and say no, particularly the LEs that don't have a grapeskin pack. I made the LE13 Nebbiolo, and still have most of a case. Due to my retailer not having a Stag's Leap District Merlot, I bought the Eclipse Nebbiolo, so I'll let you know for sure in a couple of years.
PS: I quit making LEs, but for a different reason than other people.
You can't just leave us hanging like that, what's the story?
I feel as if I'm mostly having a conversation with myself in this thread, but I might be in a fairly unique position to be tasting an Eclipse Cab at 21 months, and an LE Washington Cab/Merlot at 18 months at the same time. While they're both quite enjoyable, the LE seems to have a bit of that "Red Mountain" magic. The Eclipse might be a bit "bigger" at this point, but this LE is just plain better, better nose, better flavor, etc. and we've made the Eclipse Cab three times so far, and it's been nothing less than impressive all three rounds, so this is no fluke. Conclusion: The LE's can definitely be as good or better than the Eclipse line, depending on the source...
Boatboy24
No longer a newbie, but still clueless.
In my limited experience, the LE's are of the same or better quality as the Eclipse. That is when comparing apples to apples. In other words, compare a grape pack Eclipse to a grape pack LE. I'm not sure about putting up a non grape pack LE against a grape pack Eclipse.
From a processing perspective, my grape pack LE's have performed almost identically to the Eclipse line. That is, a lot of fluffy lees. That is very frustrating, as there is a lot of loss. I started the Forza a few weeks ago and the inclusion of two packs of bentonite had me hopeful that maybe I'd get more compact lees and less loss. Unfortunately, that has not been the case.
From a processing perspective, my grape pack LE's have performed almost identically to the Eclipse line. That is, a lot of fluffy lees. That is very frustrating, as there is a lot of loss. I started the Forza a few weeks ago and the inclusion of two packs of bentonite had me hopeful that maybe I'd get more compact lees and less loss. Unfortunately, that has not been the case.
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The LE Nebbiolo was the first WE LE with a grapeskin pack. My initial SG was about 1.072, and was supposed to rise to about 1.09 to get the alcohol as advertised. That never materialized for me and for many others. A certain person was contacted at WE, who said something like 'I'm in the same boat, it's the viscosity of the grape pack keeping the SG artificially low.' He even provided pictures of said gooey pack. That was when I decided to start squeezing grape packs as part of my pre-fermentation ritual, and saw selection kits go from 1.076 to 1.09 and Eclipse kits go from 1.078 to 1.098. Later that year, I got a second LE Nebbiolo, and made it up the "new way". Much to my surprise, the SG went from 1.074 to 1.084. I even complained about it here. Someone sent the thread to that WE person, who then provided a "new" story about the grape pack being made a different and proprietary way which would not let the sugar out until fermentation. By then I had already ordered my LE South African Shiraz Cab, which was the last LE I made (and is delicious, but also way short on the starting SG).
Are you sure that the WE LE kits are 18L? CC Passport kits are indeed 18L, but I was unable to confirm whether or not the WE LE's were 18 or 16..
Was on the phone yesterday with my LHBS, and he said he is almost 100% sure the LE kits are all 18L (even the ones without skins)
All of the RJ's R.Q. we've made have been 16L. CC passport has all been 18L. Not 100% sure about WE LE. We didn't buy any from them last year, my notes from the previous year didn't include kit size, and this years WE LE's haven't shipped yet.
Forgot to mention these were all Wine Expert kits.
That's interesting. They're not due to ship until early January. Who did you buy it from?
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