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Yep. I almost always use Bellisima bottle (tall skinny bottles) for my ports and the renanna bottles for everything. Drop the cork in and everything works like a charm. I do tend to use natural corks if that makes a difference, although I will be trying nomacorcs soon.

My Italian floor corker handles 375 bottles beautifully. No issues at all.

I am pretty sure I live about 40 minutes away from you so don't tempt me! In all seriousness happy to do bottle trades sometime.

Accounting (wife) approved the purchase for the Cherie Merlot, which she enjoys more than Cab, and the Jolie Sauv Blanc. I'm actually pretty excited about the Sauv Blanc. In all my winemaking the whites have always gotten rave reviews.

Thanks for heads up on this special pricing! Picked up two kits (separate orders with coupon code this evening). One of the kits I bought was labeled as being distributed in April 2017, so I have no qualms with the kit still being good. I've made much older kits! FYI - There was no discount on...

I looked into the Astrapaqs a few weeks ago. The president of the company sent me the following reply which was very informative. Personally I am still debating whether it is a good fit for particular use cases like concerts and glass free areas. "For BIB and pouches, if you bump your SO2 to...

Fantastic quantity of Limoncello there! I just recently completed three versions of Limoncello - Version using Everclear and lemon zest - Version using 4 dehydrated lemon slices and vodka - Version using 10 dehydrated lemon slices and vodka Interesting to hear the feedback so far as it...

Hi all. Finally able to start resurrecting the hobby. Has anyone tried the Northern Brewer Master Vintner kits, specifically the Moscato or Riesling? I see Tim Vandergrift is assisting in this product. Curious how it compares to RJS and WE.

According to my records I crafted the wine around Jan.-Feb. 2012. As for the oak, I seem to recall 2-3 packs.

Finally back after a long hiatus. Curious to see if anyone made the Gamay Nouveau. Pulled a couple of bottles out of the cellar finally and I am far from impressed. The oak seems to be so overpowering it is almost difficult to drink. Would love to hear your impression on the kit if you...

Yep. I'm keeping the list for now, and once we have a good quantity (10+) will present it to the owner along with a general proposed "wine" club plan\structure. We don't want anything to do with those hydroponic growers or brewers. :-)

Yep...sure is. If there is enough interest and a fairly formalized structure the owner will seriously consider hosting us. Just thinking that we should get 10+ people to express interest.

Hello all. My dad and I are in the middle of a batch of Selection Speciale Port. He would like to bulk-age the wine, but split the 3 gallon batch into 3 separate 1 gallon carboys. In each carboy would go a "tweaked" version of Port so that we can see a range of different styles and effects...

Hello all. I am very interested in making a batch of Sauternes wine. Unfortunately I have been unable to find a kit in this domain, however after scouring my books I did find a recipe in "Winemaking" by Stanley Anderson. Has anyone made this type of wine and if so, would you mind sharing...

All, Thanks for your posts thus far. Just as a FYI I was using the ABV line on my hydrometer which was displaying 2.5-3% (at bottling). As for the SG levels, I'll have to get those when i return home and will post accordingly. Are the ABV scales on a hydrometer accurate?

I recently spoke to the owners of a beer/wine/hydroponics shop near Joliet and they are tentatively willing to host a wine club. All I need to come up with is a proposal surrounding frequency, meeting agenda/topics, and expectations of them. If you are interested in participating in the wine...

Hello all. Recently made an Island Mist kit and ended up with a 2.5-3% ABV rather than the expected 6%. Any ideas on what would contribute to such a major difference? We followed the instructions to a t, and topped off using wine rather than water.

Hi Bison23! I'm not a member of a local club (haven't been able to find one or track down "corkers without borders" as Racer mentioned), but more than willing to start one with others. Perhaps we can convince Brew and Grow in Bolingbrook to host the meetings once a month? I can certainly ask...

Hello everyone. I just started in home winemaking, and I can already tell that this is going to be an addiction of a hobby in need of a serious intervention. :h Within the course of a few weeks I started the following: First: Island Mist - Mango Symphony Second: Riesling Ice Wine Style...