Cellar Craft Argentinian Malbec

[geek]

My friend is asking me about this kit which I've never made.
I made a lower end 12L Winexpert Chilean Malbec (with NO grape skins pack) back in May and it has come really nice now.

To my knowledge, the CC Showcase is a 18L of juice kit plus the grape skins pack.
What yeast is in it and would you change it?

I think he told me he can get it on sale shipped for ~$123.95

Any comments on this CC Showcase I can pass to my friend......thanks.

 

[sour_grapes]

Can't help you directly, but I just made a WE Selection International Argentinian Malbec. Its too early to tell, of course, but it seems really promising. It was a, I think, 12 L kit, but it did have a grape pack. I subbed out the yeast for RP15. It tasted great even just after secondary.

Now, TELL ME WHERE I CAN GET THE CC SHOWCASE KIT SHIPPED FOR $124 Simoleons!?!?! I would like to jump all over that.

 

[SouthernChemist]

The CC Showcase kits are 18L kits (juice + grape skin pack). I have no doubt it would make a good wine. It would probably take 18-24 months for the wine to show its full potential, but that will depend on your friend's tastes, of course. My guess would be the kit comes with the ole EC-1118 standard. Should your friend substitute the yeast? That's a personal choice and also depends on your friend's experience and his ability to babysit the fermentation. There was a recent thread on substituting the yeast in a WE Argentine Malbec. All of the yeast choices would apply to this kit, as well:

http://www.winemakingtalk.com/forum/f84/yeast-malbec-42349/

BTW, that is a good price for that kit!

 

[ibglowin]

Correct, they are 16L of Juice and a 2L Grape Pack. Still, the Showcase kits are some of the best kit wines available and worth the price!

 

[geek]

Correct, they are 16L of Juice and a 2L Grape Pack. Still, the Showcase kits are some of the best kit wines available and worth the price!

Mike, have you made this one specifically? If so any tricks or thoughts on it? Or you basically follow the manufacturer instructions.?

Lastly, I could swear the kit says 18L outside, which I though that is only the juice.

 

[SouthernChemist]

Mike, have you made this one specifically? If so any tricks or thoughts on it? Or you basically follow the manufacturer instructions.?

Lastly, I could swear the kit says 18L outside, which I though that is only the juice.

They generally always include the volume of the grape pack for the total volume of the kit unless the grape skins are dried.

 

[ibglowin]

I have made many of the Showcase kits but not this one. When I was making them almost nonstop a few years ago they lost their source in Argentina so the kit was not available for a year or so. I would be tempted to do a yeast swap but other than that I would make it per directions.

It very well may say 18L on the outside but that is always the juice and the grape pack. When you reconstitute the juice take a not of how much water you need to get to the 23L mark. It will be ~7L. And remember that on these grape pack kits you always make the juice up to 23L FIRST, then add the grape pack on top so you end up with ~ 25L total volume.

Mike, have you made this one specifically? If so any tricks or thoughts on it? Or you basically follow the manufacturer instructions.?

Lastly, I could swear the kit says 18L outside, which I though that is only the juice.

 

[geek]

I think it comes with ec-1118 yeast but not sure.
I ordered the kit and will be making it for a friend. The kit is a year old according to the vendor (made in Dec. 2012 per the manuf. number).

I think that yeast should still be good enough.

 

[jsiddall]

I did make this kit a few months back but don't recall the yeast. EC-1118 sounds right though.

I am new to all this with only 3 kits done so far but this, like the two other premium red kits I have made, tasted pretty nasty after 6 weeks. Nasty as in it might not compete with a $5 commercial bottle! Really hoping a year or two in the cellar will work some magic and turn it more like a $20 bottle instead.

 

[sour_grapes]

I would be tempted to do a yeast swap but other than that I would make it per directions.

I think it comes with ec-1118 yeast but not sure.
I ordered the kit and will be making it for a friend. The kit is a year old according to the vendor (made in Dec. 2012 per the manuf. number).

I think that yeast should still be good enough.

I may be wrong, but I think Mike was suggesting that he would swap to another strain of yeast for oenological purposes, not because the yeast was old.

As it happens, I just posted about yeasts to pair with Malbec earlier today.

 

[geek]

Thanks Paul.

 

[sour_grapes]

Now, TELL ME WHERE I CAN GET THE CC SHOWCASE KIT SHIPPED FOR $124 Simoleons!?!?! I would like to jump all over that.

After I made this post, I went web-trawling, and found somewhere whose shipped price met your description. However, they said they only had 3 in stock at that price; I didn't want to order it in case your posting this thread would inadvertently undermine your friend's find, so I held off.

I ordered the kit and will be making it for a friend.

Okay, this was the green light I was looking for! I ordered mine last night. At the time I did, their site said "only 1 available at this price" (down from 3 earlier in the day). Yeee-haw!

 

[geek]

I am looking to get ICV-D254 for this kit.
The small package is cheap about less than $2, the shipping is a killer....lol

A shop 20 miles from me has it by the grams (they buy it in bulk) at .20 cents per gram.

Would like to know if 6 grams would be good enough or should I get 8 grams to mimic what the original package has?

 

[kevinlfifer]

I made the kit in August. Was powerful at bottling so I think it will be fantastic in a year.

 

[geek]

I made the kit in August. Was powerful at bottling so I think it will be fantastic in a year.

powerful in a good way ?

 

[sour_grapes]

I am looking to get ICV-D254 for this kit.
The small package is cheap about less than $2, the shipping is a killer....lol

A shop 20 miles from me has it by the grams (they buy it in bulk) at .20 cents per gram.

Hmmm, 40 miles R/T. Lessay your car gets 28 mpg, and gas is $3.75, your "shipping" cost is now $5.28, before you consider wear and tear. (My own analysis of my car usage leads me to value the capital of vehicle miles at $0.09/mile, exclusive of maintenance.) So, I think this will cost you on the order of $9 to pick up (exclusive of car maintenance). How much is the shipping from MoreWine?

Now, if you want a good excuse to go the LHBS and browse, well, then I have no counterargument!

 

[geek]

LOL.
That 'local' place will be shipping it a cheap USPS way....I did that analysis too....lol

 

[sour_grapes]

Oh, your name isn't "geek" for no good reason.

Now..... seems to me that USPS charges the same from CT to CT as they do from CT to anywhere else in the country. You may just have found us all a cheap source of specialty yeasts! Mind sharing the name of your LHBS?

 

[geek]

maltosecart dot com

They typically ship UPS and maybe this USPS shipment was a one time of....not sure.