Bottled my first gallon of wine...

[agdodge4x4]

Well, almost a gallon. Ended up with about 4 bottles and 3/4 or maybe even closer to half. Anyway, it tastes pretty good. Primary fermentation started about 5 months ago. It is a welch's red wine. I got to use my floor corker, man that thing does a smooth and great job. My question is, does it need to age 6 months MORE? By the taste, im guessing yes. I did not have to add sugar, but it seems like the wine is 'sweeter' than it was when I checked it last time, I noted it finished around 995, but now that its cleared, im reading about 997 or so. Probably a reading error. The other question is, when you put a date on the label, is it the date of bottling or start of the wine?

Thanks all! I have a white that is up for sweetening and bottling tomorrow!

 

[Airplanedoc]

I don't think it will improve much with age if its a Welches Concentrate, but I could be wrong. Besides it probably wont last that long anyway. I shold note that I just bottled my first gallon of welchs concentrate last week It was suprisingly good.

Normally the vintage is the year the grapes were picked. Safe to say its a 2010

 

[agdodge4x4]

I'm just impressed that it's wine and I can make it at home and it tastes every bit as good as the stuff in the store. It has a very clean flavor.

 

[Sirs]

I think homemade wine tastes better than any store bought

 

[agdodge4x4]

It's like it tastes fresher, cleaner, I don't know.

 

[djrockinsteve]

You date the wine the year the grapes were picked. Reds usually should be aged a year but not sure about a welch's wine. Wait until you get some real wine juice and see how good it is.

 

[agdodge4x4]

I have high hopes for my wild grape this summer.

After I bottle so I leave the bottles on their side for a few days before standing them upright?

 

[wvbrewer]

From the intructions on my wine kits it says to keep Wine bottles upright for 1 day. Then age Wine Bottles on their sides to keep Corks moist . I believe it gives the cork time swell back up all the way from being inserted in the bottle.

 

[Flem]

Lots of discussion as to the date of the wine. I've been told that it's the date the yeast is pitched. That's when the wine is born. But, like I said, there are lots of opinions on this subject.

 

[chachi44089]

Congrats!! My welches was bottled a month ago and is half gone..lol.It tastes pretty darn good. Each bottle I open tastes a bit better than the one before. I think it will get better with age. .I stand my bottles for four days then lay on their side. Do not bottle right after sweetening, wait a week after sweetening to make sure fermentation doesnt restart or your corks will blow. Get another batch going as soon as possible, that way you can still enjoy a few bottles and still have enough set aside to age. And definitly make a much bigger batch next time. I only made 2 gallons on my first batch "practice batch" and already wish I had made 5..Same amount of work and not much more in cost, but much more wine in the end

 

[Wade E]

Aging ysually depends on how much solids were in the wine, how high an abv, and the tannin level. This wont have much tanin or solids and I dont know how high your abv is but since you said you didnt add any additional sugar Im guessing no more then 11% on this. Idsay rom time it finished fermenting it would need around 4 months. I always date my wine from the time it was started but with fruits it really should be from time of harvest.

 

[ibglowin]

Nothing like that "new" wine smell!

Congratulations!

 

[captainl]

Congrats. I just opened my first bottle of welch's wine last week. It had been bottled 3 weeks but only 3 months old. 4 Liter batch, I got 5 bottles out of it but I topped mine off with some shiraz a couple of times throughout. Mine was surprisingly sweet for fermenting to dry and had just a little tartness to it. I'll wait a month and try another bottle and hope the tartness goes away...not that it is horrible. I too was wondering how aging would help this wine. Either way, I think it is worth making 5 gallons next time.

 

[ffemt128]

I think homemade wine tastes better than any store bought

I agree 100%

 

[JasonH]

Congratulations! Its a great feeling.

 

[MeatZorro]

I share similar sentiments. Make enough wine to enjoy in different stagesun til you find what timing works for your liking. I think you will find that your wine will taste just as good today as it will in a year, so long as you did not load it with tannins and acid blend. My first batch of Welch's was one of my all-time favorites. In fact, i was able to convince some friends that they were drinking a white zin; they are some of my not so wine savvy friends. However, Welch's provideds a wonderful variety of blends from many fruits that can take wines where they have rarely gone before. Whatever road your wine travels, make sure it is shared with your closet to kin.