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This is a good point I had not considered. You're right, this wine is fairly acidic without the pack, though I have generally enjoyed that. It has not seemed unbalanced. That said, there's not really much to the sweet pack, it's pretty small volume compared to a six gallon finished product...

No, I don't use the sweet pack. I prefer dry reds. I have always thought I might try one with the pack... But then, I know I really like it without, and Id hate to have thirty bottles I don't want to drink...

Seconded. Years ago I bought a couple dozen cases of used bottles on FB marketplace and Craig's list for not too much. Some had labels, some not. Still haven't used them all up!

Interesting, I didn't know CO2 was so dense. I had to actually look it up. Argon is more dense than AIR, but I assumed all components of air were also less than argon. Learn something new everyday!

I don't think sloshing is going to upset settled sediment at the bottom. The majority of the liquid movement when sloshing is at the top of the liquid column. The bottom isn't really affected unless you REALLY slosh hard. As for the CO2 "layer" I think the comments other folks have made is...

We have only 4 bottles left each of the 2017 RJS RQ french cab and french merlot, and they are just incredible. I'm sad they were RQs and we can't get them anymore, so I'm wondering what anyone would suggest for an alternative. I have bought and will soon start rjs Aussie cab. Maybe the FWK...

Built these for cheap. Sturdy and hold lots of bottles. All 2x4s and 2x 12s for the frame, and furring strips for the bottle holders.

Sweet! Now... Even more waiting!

I made the Somelier Select Nebbiolo, and I have been so far unimpressed. For a Nebbiolo it was incredibly light, and not very flavorful. I haven't bought any other SS wines for fear of the same. As you say, they are double the price. Not sure it's worth it. That being said, I have only tried...

I have switched it up, though I'm not sure how much difference it makes. I've used RC212 usually, though I'm thinking about trying BM4x4.

Good luck, let me know how it goes!

Yes, I've made this multiple times. My wife likes the MV winemakers reserve kits as every day drinkers, so I make about 1 kit a year each of the cab, merlot, carmenere, and shiraz. Best modification you can do with that kit is extra oak after fermentation. I usually throw 30-90g of oak cubes in...

Honestly, if you like chardonnay, the master vintner winemakers reserve chardonnay ($75/kit) is really pretty good. I've made a batch every year for the last four years. My mom (who always reminds me that she doesn't like chardonnay) says she loves this stuff. It's not a high end kit, but it's...

The other reason I bulk age for a while, is that I could never whip or stir all the CO2 out of the wine. I got spoons, whips, drill attachments, the works. Nothing I tried worked to get all the fizz out. Bulk age, and vacuum rack 3-4 times with the AIO pump, no more problems with carbonation.

Bottle aging gets the wine out of the carboy, so you can buy another to take its place. I'm sure others will chime in with other reasons to go either way, but aging in the carboy allows you to modify and tweak as it ages. Besides, if you age in the carboy, but want to start another wine, you...

This one is about a year now. I really like this kit. Very nice and fruity. I just bought another kit, and now that this is part of the regular lineup, I think it will be a regular part of my cellar.

Glad to see this...I have one that's been in EM for three months, I was starting to get worried about spoilage

I just read through this thread again to refresh myself on what was said. @jgmann67 how did the move go? Did you get all your wine moved safely? And what did you decide to do with the Forza, keep the EM going, or rack?

Yes I believe I did a 8-9 week EM on this one. I was worried about this one for a bunch of reasons when very young: weird color, funky aroma, objectionable taste. At one year, when I bottled, it was still pretty funky. My first glimmer of hope was at ~1.5 years old. This one has really...

Only when I'm not enjoying them with hardwoods.