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My kit says at day 20, i should degas and add the final clearing/stabilizing chemicals. I'm at day 16. I havent degassed, topped off, or put any clearing chemicals in. Should i go ahead and do those things now? I know after that my wine will need another 2 weeks or so in the secondary, but i...

My Cabernet has been in a Carboy for secondary fermentation for about 10 days now. The sg has been at 1.000 for the last 5 days or so. Is the fermentation done? My kit says it should be .998 or lower, but I'm thinking mine won't get down to that. The starting sg was 1.084. Also, I'm concerned...

No worries Dugger-I think hijacking the thread is allowed, as long as we all learn something :) Wade- For a newbie like me, what does ferment to dry mean??

thanks everyone for the tips about when to top off the carboy. as far as degasing goes, how do i know when the wine is ready to degas and add the clearing chemicals? The directions say day 20. If my wine stops fermenting before the day 20 marker (if my sg readings haven't changed in a few...

Just racked to my carboy. There seems to be a lot of space between the wine and the top of the carboy. Not sure what the level is supposed to be at. Here is a photo. Is the wine level ok? or should i top it off? if so, what should i top off with? a similar type of wine? help please!

Thanks John. I've ben stiring based on suggestions of other members. I'll wait another day or two and see where I'm at.

I'm making the Grand Cru International Cabernet, my first attempt at homemaking. Directions say around day 6-8 of primary fermentation the sg should be 1.020 or lower, at which time you should move to the carboy. At the end of the day yesterday (Day 4) my wine was at 1.024. What is the ideal sg...

Thank you everyone for the suggestions. I've been covering my primary with a box, and covering the box with a blanket during the day and my temperature is stable at 76 degrees. Seems to be retaining the heat... I'm thinking ahead to the next step and wanted to know: For secondary...

I just started my first batch of wine yesterday, and used iodophor to sanitize my equiptment. My primary air dried for quite some time before I added my juice and yeast. However, the mixing spoon i took directly out of my idophor/water solution, shook a few times to get the big drops off, then...

thanks all for the tips. i ended up putting the grape skins in the mesh bag provided and let the oak chips roam free! Glad to hear this kit makes some good wine :) I just started my primary yesterday but am a little concerned about the temperature of the water. I started it out at 76 degrees...

great- thanks...i didnt even think about the grapeskins and oak, so that is very helpful. I was a little confused by the instructions regarding the grape skins...do i leave them in the bag they are in and put the whole bag into the wine? put them directly into the wine? The kit came with a...

Great, thanks! I think I'll go ahead and keep the lid off...we'll see how that works.

This is my first attempt at homemade wine. I've been reading a lot of posts about whether or not to use an airlock during primary fermentation. Based on what I've read, it seems better NOT to use one. Has anyone used this specific kit, and if so, what did you do?