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Looking to make a red. Previously made the Australian Cab, Super Tuscan and the Amarone Classico. The latter 2 have been my favorites so was thinking of redoing one of them. However, open to suggestions if anyone thinks any of the others that I haven’t yet tried are any better?

Wow, that would put it at over $20 a bottle. Hard to imagine a large market for this and that seems to be reflected in the relatively limited experience with these buckets on this board. At the heart of it I’m not really in this hobby to save money or anything but at the same tine it’s hard to...

Well, anyone ever pull the trigger on any more Bhrem frozen musts and have feedback on the results? I’ve got a itch for a red and while I have made some decent high end red kits I’m looking for something better. Some of these buckets are like $300 so assuming you net 5gal after pressing that...

I’ve never had a tart tasting kit wine so agree there doesn’t seem to be any potential upside. I think that the only thing this may confirm is that the MLB doesn’t actually hurt the kit wine...

Seems fairly unnecessary unless you don’t already measure the gravity on both ends? The only benefit I can envision is that sometimes juice buckets seem to have already started fermenting by the time you get them so you don’t really know the starting gravity.

‘How to Brew’ by John Palmer is the Bible of homebrewing. It’s a big read but excellent info. Brewing is similar to wine making in that most people start with kits and move up after they get the hang of it (all grain/all grape). The beer kits will give you pretty much everything you need but...

I also have a narrow range finishing hydrometer and personally love it for both beer and wine. It’s takes a lot of the guesswork out of the equation for exactly where you end up. Not necessary but very handy IMO especially for beer where the starting and finishing gravity are much closer so the...

There is a website in the brewing community called ‘brulosophy’ where seasoned amateur home brewers do fairly ‘scientific’ experiments to put all of the things that homebrewers argue over to the test. They make a control batch and a test batch, then serve 20-30 people a triangle test of 2...

Never tried freezing but you can drill a perfect hole in a bung using a simple ‘hole saw’ drill bit. Just take a piece of 1/4” pipe and file the edge a bit to make it sharp and it will easily core out a hole. I made one years ago out of cheap 1/4” brass water supply line from HD. I just like...

Is there an adapter or something that can be used with a barrel that takes a #9.5 bung?

If it’s received too much O2 it tends to get a brownish hue. As was said before it may improve with time, but not if it’s been exposed to too much O2. If it was a cheap kit the lack of body is not surprising. Can try tannins but they will only mask this. Can’t say that I’ve ever perceived a...

It’s been awhile since I made a kit so couldn’t remember if the high end kits came with 18L of juice + the skin pack or 16L + the skin pack. So are you saying that you prefer this over the SLM? I’ve made the SLM 2x and while it’s pretty good IMO it’s also not as good as the two RJS kits I made...

Is the Italian Montepilciano an 18L kit. I’ve never made a MV kit but I like RJS. Looks like I could get that kit at Midwest right now for $125 and free shipping. They also have a 20% off deal going.

So, pulled a SLM today that was made before I had the AIO and immediately put the VacuVin on to see if there was any CO2. Nothing. Maybe I’m not describing it correctly but something is just off/missing on the finish especially compared to commercial wine, even cheap commercial wine... Also...

I really don’t notice any CO2 at all when pouring my 40mo Lodi Cab but I’d be pleasantly pleased if the AIO removes the jammy taste from future batches. Only time will tell but I’m hesitant to try WE kits at this point in favor of RJS.

A temperature difference between the wine/water and the air can easily create a pressure difference during shaking. Also, there are other dissolved gases in wine besides CO2. Therefore I personally don’t put any weight into the ‘shake test’ and instead use time and the lack of very tiny bubbles...

I’m new to wine but have spent 10 years trying to emulate my favorite Belgian beers. On my scale I have the ability to control temperature and water profiles that are said to be “the key” but I’ve never come close to perfecting. On that note though, many of the worlds best breweries maintain...

I don’t subscribe to the “shake test” because I get a puff of gas even when shaking water...but my kits have all been bulk aged in carboys for at least a year so I don’t think it’s a degassing issue.

This. What I perceive in many kits I’ve never perceived in any commercial wine, ever. Something unique to the process or maybe I have just lost my mind!

Thanks. I noticed you seem to indicate that you no longer use a barrel. Any reason for the change? I’m hoping that the barrel takes my wines to the next level but maybe I’m too optimistic.