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It's probably less important on skin kits anyway. If you have time, you should check out Tim Vandersomething's YouTube video on extended maceration. I know that's not exactly what you're asking here, but it might ease your mind and maybe provide a few ways to get the most from your kits.

I just did an extended maceration on a kit with skins for 6 weeks and it was phenomenal. With EM you have to be aware though at 10-14 days, it tastes awful because the different Tannins and phenols are extracted at different rates. So you've got to do at least 4 or 5 weeks if you're already...

Jeez. Just did the math.. Id need like $300 worth of brandy to turn this into a port.

Both of those ideas seem reasonable. It definitely tastes like a good sangria candidate. Probably won't have to add extra sugar. How long do you think I can wait it out? Also, let's say I did go port.. What's next? Do I just get some brandy and go for it? I've actually never even had a port...

I have a wine that I accidentally added campdeb tablets too, too early. The SG got down to 1.010 before fermentation stopped. I've racked it and splashed it a few times and it's been 4 weeks now. And after making a few yeast starters, it's still not moving. It's a cheap kit wine but one that...

It's not necessarily saving up for the All-in-one. It's that, out of principle, I've told my wife that I'll have no more big wine purchases until my birthday.... Which is in November. What a terrible decision. Haha

Are there any other hand pumps that anyone uses? I mostly stir but I'm getting pretty tired of it.

What's the difference between tannin complex and tannin riche?

Hey, another SE. Hardly meet any of us out in the wild. What sort of tech do you work with? I'm primarily web tech and mobile apps.

Is there a decent winemakers software out there? Something for logging and making notes, etc? All of the normal things that you write down on a weekly/monthly basis. I keep losing my notebooks... Literally on my 3rd one this year and I can't remember any of my wine's abv.. I'll be honest though...

That means I have to buy one a month until the end of the year... Challenge accepted.

I have two questions.. Butt bucket? Like the the one my neighbors used to use to make moonshine in (toilet)? How addicted is firmly addicted? I've got 4 carboys. Is 10 the magic number?

Yeah I got started from a kit I got for Christmas and I love it. Honestly, I want to move into frozen must or purchasing whole grapes within the next couple years but I'm afraid that the learning curve is too high for the cost, especially right now. Will kits and tweaking them help me go to...

On some of my other kits, I've started with a more suitable yeast and when it looked like fermentation might have stopped at the wrong SG, I added 1118. Johnd, Is there anything I can add in place of pressed skins? This is my first premium kit so it will be my first set of skins.

I've seen a lot of people skipping clarifiers. Do you notice a tangible difference in taste or is there another reason for it?

Yeah, I'm not necessarily looking to tweak it majorly, but to make the most of it. Do you believe the high priced kits are great how they are? What do you normally do?

I meant to ask about this. How was the currant tweak? Would you recommend, or have you noticed a difference? I've done it on cheaper kits to add a little extra.

Excellent news. I was afraid I'd have to buy a new piece of equipment for it. Do you have a solid lid then? I have a bung with an airlock right now but can pick up a solid bung easily.

What do you mean by lock it down? Ive been thinking about doing it in a 7.8 gallon bucket and then spraying argon Gas in it around 2 or 3 weeks. Also, I have the 7. 5 gal fermonster. Does that work fine?

Awesome. I was thinking 6 to 9 weeks of EM, and then another 6 to 9 months of bulk aging. I like bulk aging but it's hard when you want to put more stuff in your carboys. I've got like 100 bottles worth of wine that I made from tweaked kits. I hope I can get a year out of it.