aging

Hello, Last autumn I've made my first wine from grapes (opposed to kit wines before) and it is aging nicely. It is a cabernet sauvignon but it still tastes young. Sour and tart. Its been transferred to a fresh carboy twice and on oak chips in between for about three months. I'm happy with the...

I am fairly new to brewing home brewing and have made a couple of batches of wine, mead, and beer. I have some recurring questions that I can’t seem to find any consensus on and wanted to get some clarification. Thanks in advance! When racking and/or taking hydrometer samples throughout the...

Hi everyone I have been reading about the benefits of microoxygenation of red wines, so that made me wondering how to achieve that if not aging in barrels? Im guessing that plastic carboys would offer some levels of micro oxygenation? What about using a natural cork to allow the passage of...

I have some merlot aging in carboys. These are from whole grapes back in Sept 2020, and have been bulk aging on a bit of oak since Dec 2020. I want to send some 100mL sampler bottles to a friend across country when the wine is ready. I was planning to bottle in a few months and then let it age...

Hello all, So I have some red wine that will be bottled soon. I found a few threads discussing the topic of using wax seals on wine bottles. However, there was usually one question asked that never seemed to get a straight answer or was ignored altogether. My hope is to get that questioned...

I have reached bottling time for my first kit, a Cru International Australian Cabernet w/ skins. The kit already had me do a stabilizing step where I dissolved the two including packs of sulfite and potassium sorbate. Considering it is a Cabernet Sauvignon, I hope to let some of these bottles...

My Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot are both reaching the six month aging process. We tasted them a couple of days ago and not too bad. I bought a Argentina Malbec and will probably start fermentation tomorrow.

Just making sure. My Winexpert Lodi ranch 11 cab kit is now aged 3 months. The color is a medium dark reddish purple. See photo. Most cabs I have ever seen have this dark purple color but maybe this is different. Just concerned about oxidation. Is mine pretty par for the course at this point...

I really wanted to find a ~30 gallon neutral oak barrel, but they seem to be difficult to come across. So now I'm thinking of going with a 30 gallon stainless steel. I won't get the nice texture you get from oak oxygenation but at least I can work at a quantity I think would be manageable. Has...

I have a cab franc aging right now that’s missing some of the more bright flavors and is a bit pyrazine heavy. I was thinking about adding some acid blend to help it balance. Is it a bad idea to do this after fermentation? If not, how would I go about it - do I just add the acid powder in, or do...

so I wen to check my wine in the garage (first racking after secondary fermentation) it’s been aging for a couple of weeks now. Today I noticed an oily sheen on my wine and it looked like the level had dropped a half inch from where it WAS when I racked it off. I have been checking it every...

I'm a rank newbie and really won't be making a great amount of wine (so I say<grin>). Being located in south Alabama it is hot and humid down here. Winters are usually not that cold with subfreezing temperatures usually only at night and might be consecutive night time freezing for 2-3 day...

What is the best type of oak for aging sangiovese?

I have completed my kits initial time frame, i can bottle now, but I'd like to add some oak spirals to give more oak flavor. How does the oak age in the bottle? Does it increase over time? Decrease or stay the same .I guess I am trying to figure out how long to keep the oak in. If I need more...

Which one is best for preventing oxidation?

Hi Guys. I’m brand new to this great forum and to brand new to wine making. I have my first ever 30 Bottle kit in primary FV and it’s bubbling away nicely. I was intending to rack to my 23 litre PET carboy and bottle once stabilised and cleared. However the majority of you guys strongly...

I've been making Mead for a few years but I've never given much thought to aging it. Do you feel it improves the flavor of the Mead? And if you do which wood do you think would be best for a fruit Mead

Any good advice on aging the wine? Will wine age better in the carboy or should I go ahead and bottle it? How long should I age the wine for? Also, are there any proper techniques to aging from a carboy? Is racking the wine periodically good for the aging process? Would it be better to age the...