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I have used #8 corks, ( not the std #9) to cork Champagne bottles. They go into the neck better, it’s not a perfect solution but we have had wine in those bottles for a few years with no issues. Roy

Welcome to W T ! I’ve been making wine in Florida for 7 years now but I don’t know where the unmentionable place is. Anyway we live in the Ft Myers area. Roy

I have been using L D Carlson first quality corks for 12 yrs now. They are like 13 cents each in packs of 100. We still have wines bottled 8-10 yrs ago and NO issues. Whites & Reds. I’m amazed at how well they work especially for the price. Roy

Kuziwk, only time will tell. I have 3, 5 and 1 yr old CC Amarones When the barrel one is 2+ yrs old I can taste test it against the then 4 & 6 yr non barrel ones. My need a few friends if I open 3 bottles of Amarone ! Roy

I bought mine from Vadi Barrels. Hungarian oak. Have 2 forty liter ones and a 23 liter one. I top them off every 2 weeks. It takes a full 750 ml wine bottle to top off the 2 forty liter barrels. I just pop the silicone bung out and look into the top of the barrel with a flash light. It amazes me...

We have made the C C Amarone 3 times. It’s always awesome after 3 years. We do add extra oak in the primary And at the first few rackings we add an oak spiral. We have our 2018 in a barrel now for almost 6 months, first time we have had this kit in a barrel. Time will tell. Roy

We use the All In One bottle filler system. Works awesome been using it for at least 8 years. Actually we just received our 2nd in the mail today. Thanks Steve for the great service. After 8 years and over 3,000 bottles the vacuum release “switch” died. ($12.95) Most likely because I used to run...

Stickman, why would we lose color stirring the lees in a wine less than 4 months old? Does that mean that you can lose color racking a young Red? Just curious. Roy

You can also put towels/blankets around the fermenters/ carboys, that will help keep fermentation temperatures in, and add a few degrees. Also will mediate the changes in room temperatures. Roy

I rack my wines every 3-4 months. When their is NO sediment on the bottom of the carboy I say it’s time to bottle. Sometimes it takes a year, sometimes almost 2!! Learned not to rush things. Roy

Those racks are very similar to The Seville’s that I have. I stack my bottles 3 high and can put 30 bottles in each section. But Seville includes end rods so the bottles can’t slide out the ends, very easy and necessary to add. I stacked my racks by making my own “connectors “. Then a few years...

TikiWine, I reuse my oak spirals in my Smoker! Roy

We have a Cab that I Over Oaked. At 1 yr I put a stickie on the bin “over oaked use for top off only” . Not at 2.5 yrs old it’s a nice Cab. Roy

I too miss the Toy Store. Using Label Peelers now, used them off and on for 4 yrs. They are almost 1/2 way out West. Ohio. They have reasonable prices and do a great job. Roy

We bottle a lot of ours in those flip top beer bottles like Grolosh, not sure of spelling. They work great on the boat or picnics etc. Roy

D J 100, We use the AIO bottling system and our head space has been uniform for over a 1,000 bottles. That’s about 2.5 years. Seems to me your holding the release button inconsistently, but I can see how that would give you high neck levels but not low levels. Just my 2 cents, Roy

Gumpole, It cleared very nicely, faster than my Apple or Peach wines. It did dump a ton of Lees though. Started with 15+ gals of must after pressing ended with 10 gals of wine. I used 10 lbs of mango to 1 gal finished wine. One batch I added a few banannas and strawberries to the ferment, liked...

I made a Mango wine 2.5 yrs ago, I bottled some in green bottles and some in clear glass. I haven’t seen a difference. BUT my wine is stored in a 68* dark room, that may matter. I also do one clear bottle for every batch I bottle mostly all Reds, for quality control, some of those batches are...

Our Pinot Noirs are also very light in color. Both the juice buckets & the Pinot from real Calif grapes. Numbers all good, fermented slow, etc. Good taste etc so we are just drinking with light color, there could be worse “issues “. Roy

Tradowsk, a friend of ours received a cheap 1 gal Cab kit for his B day. He gave it to me to make for him. Well it was flat, little taste, little alcohol, etc. So I back sweetend it with Blackberry Brandy. Wow what a difference. Could work for your Merlot too. Roy