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Brettanomyces is not some super organism that will take over you fermentation equipment (contaminated barrels and wood aside). It is a yeast, like saccharomyces cerevisiae, and it can be killed off just like any other yeast. It generally is known to give 'barnyard' or 'funky' flavors/aromas when...

My understanding is that Global Vintners is the parent company/organization of Winexpert and Vineco.

Nice that it came with a stand! Ultimately, it seems like as long as it holds wine, it would be a decent enough value.

In principle there is no difference between bulk aging and bottle aging. It is easier to age the wine consistently in a carboy than a bottle (especially if you don't have the room to store all the bottles in the same place), but that difference may be minimal depending on your setup. Ultimately...

I saw in the description that these barrels have no bung hole, but they will drill one for one you upon request. What is the typical bung hole size for a barrel?

A straight Viognier would be a different wine than the VRM blend, which has merit just because it is not a blend you will commonly see in a wine kit.

I am a bit surprised you were told detailed information about the kit composition. They also seem rather low. That information would be pretty proprietary, I think, and I know I've seen others comment on how they could not find out the information. Keep in mind that commercial wines sold at...

What you can never tell from these lists is what the winemaker actually did when making the wine. Things like barrel aging or other tweaks can make a big difference.

If they suddenly remade the Red Mountain Cab kit again, I would probably buy more than one. Easily one of the best kits I have made.

http://www.vinecowine.com/products/passport-series Just saw this on Vineco's website. Figured I would share. Aglianico Cabernet Merlot - Campania | Tuscany | Veneto, Italy (February 2018) Sweetness: Dry Alcohol: 14% Body: Full Aglianico, a full-bodied Italian varietal, adds...

I second the recommendation of doing bench trials. Never just blend things on a large scale from the start. The result may be okay (it may be good), but it could be even better in another ratio! Also, if by some chance it was a disaster, you are stuck with it. Start with small...

Where I used to live in NC there was a wine store that sold a particular Grenache/Syrah wine from France. I believe it was mostly Greanche with a little Syrah added. Because of the strict AOC regulations regarding location, this particular wine could not be labeled and sold as a Cotes du Rhone...

Blending is definitely a possibility with a kit wine. The only thing I would add is that you will probably want the wines to age some before you determine how you want to blend them. If you blend too early, it might not turn out as you intended as the blended wine ages. Also, do trials with...

It would be pretty ironic if it turned out that the must was not stirred well enough or something! You have to ask the 'dumb' questions, and as Ajmassa5983 said, the manufacturer will ask them, too!

Champagne not usually completely dry. I think most people would be surprised that 'Brut' and 'Extra Dry' champagne still contain some residual sugar. You would probably be better off fermenting with the F-pack added if you want a dry wine. If you really want a 'Champagne' flavor, you will...

I agree that 9 months is probably a little young to make a full judgement. Wines with Sangiovese tend to be redder rather than dark, inky, and purple, as Paul said. Of course, RJS will likely not tell you the percentage of varietals (proprietary!), but a lot of Super Tuscans are majority...

The yeast strain can make an impact on a wine (or beer, mead, etc.). That being said, I think the effect is a bit overstated by people at times. Some of the effects may not show up for some time (you need chemistry to do its thing). There's also nothing to say the effects have to be exclusively...

I would think it's simply not worth the risk. There are plenty of other containers you can ferment in that are safer. Let's not forget that the Romans made wine in lead vessels. They used to boil grape must down in lead containers to concentrate it and inevitably let the lead affect the...

What you should do is just buy another kit and run a control experiment with EC-1118. That would be the only way to know for sure. The downside is that you would have even more Malbec to drink. What a shame!

Definitely going to make the Shiraz/Viognier! The Tempranillo also sounds appealing. I'm a little surprised there is only one white offering this year, though.