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Some people appear to be more sensitive to the taste of sorbic acid, which is actually what prevents yeast growth rather than the sorbate. We only use the potassium salt because it is more soluble in water than sorbic acid. Others do not notice it in the taste of their wine, though. If your wine...

Invert sugar simply consists of the same sugars (glucose, fructose) that are already present in grapes. A complete fermentation will consume just about all the sugars that invert sugar/syrup provides. Some people, however, are sensitive to the taste of potassium sorbate if it is present in high...

Oak chips should become extractedi in a relatively short time compared to oak cubes/beans (6-8 weeks).

The general line from the manufacturers (and those who have worked for them) is that you should not need to make any acid adjustments. They are not the same as fresh grape must and should not be treated the same. The exact process that they use for the adjustment is likely proprietary, so I...

It will likely come with EC-1118 as it is an RJS kit. Any yeast used in Italian red wines would probably work just fine.

The finished product is probably the same regardless of volume size...provided they're both treated and aged equally. You would still have to do all the same work and put the same amount of time into it. Ultimately, though, I feel like one would be better off investing money into a full volume...

55 degrees as an ideal celllaring temperature is based off of European practices and traditions. You're better off trying to ensure your wine does not experience significant temperature fluctuations than trying to reach this temperature...which can be beyond the means of many people dependent on...

One thing to keep in mind is that fermentation itself will generally keep things moving around in the wine pretty well, and there are yeast suspended throughout the wine, too. They'll even be in the grape skins. I personally squeeze the grape bag every day, but that's more of a peace of mind...

Keep in mind that these grape skins packs (or whatever the manufacturer will call them) are processed products. They are designed to add a certain amount of things (color, sugar, tannin levels, etc.) to the the wine. I'm sure WE will claim their grape skins are just as good if not better than...

Short of a potential problem when transferring the wine, you can certainly do this. You will not get anything more out of the grapes, though, versus putting them in a bag.

Alternatively, you can just cover the bucket and attach an airlock before letting the last bit of fermentation finish. There is nothing inherently better about racking to a secondary container.

Sounds like a nice white blend. I regret not picking this up when I had the chance. Viognier can make such nice wines!

The grape skins that come with the Winexpert LE kits seem to take some time giving up their sugar content compared to other manufacturers. I remember when the Nebbiolo LE kit came out (2012 year), a lot of people reported low SG values to start with. Ultimately, it should be fine.

The percentage of Viognier is usually pretty small (a little goes a long way, I've been told), but it does make a difference. It is also blended before fermentation rather than afterwards. Some places in the northern Rhone even have the two grapes mixed and harvested together rather than...

According to the Mosti Mondiale website for the Megllioli kits, the Sicilian Primitivo kit comes with a grape pack but no oak or raisins. You can certainly oak it to your own personal taste, though.

These 'wine cooler' type kits are not really fruit wines. Most of them probably use artificial flavoring or a combination of artificial/natural flavorings. Unfortunately, I doubt you will see much in the way of improvement. The artificial watermelon flavor/aroma may tone down some, but it will...

1. The Triumph is a LE kit, so it may be harder to come by...though it seems this year with their pricing setup there are more available than I remember in past years. Unfortunately, there really aren't many Bordeaux type blends available in kit form, though I do think there is a CC Showcase...

What is the SG right now? That is a better way to know if fermentation has ceased.

My first kit wine was the WE Selection International NZ Pinot Noir. It changed considerably over several months and really came its own after 18-24 months. I think you will find something similar for the all the other high-end Pinot Noir kits...they really need aging to develop fully. As a side...

Allowing the grape skins to float freely will not have any negative effects on the wine besides making transfer potentially difficult (or very difficult). That being said, you're not likely to get anything more out of them versus putting them in a straining bag given the time frame involved.