Other Bottling vs Bulk Aging

[Ajmassa]

I never got the story with that but I believe it's for a good reason. And their prices ARE actually too good to be true.
I don't know for sure, but I thought it's blocked because they scam. Not positive though.

 

[facn1989]

I never got the story with that but I believe it's for a good reason. And their prices ARE actually too good to be true.
I don't know for sure, but I thought it's blocked because they scam. Not positive though.

I thought so as well, but their prices for WE are pretty similar to Lapel Peelers. I have bought two kits from them and confirmed the production dates from the label code with RJS and they confirmed those batches are 100% good (unless they are switching the label codes and scamming people that way). I did plenty of research as I thought it was too good to be true as well, but RJS confirmed them as reputable sellers.

 

[AZMDTed]

Now you know why I didn't mention 'them'.

 

[Ajmassa]

I'm sure one day I'll get the story with all that.
Aside from labelpeelers.com finevinewines.com and morewine.com there's a few more that have good selection. I keep seeing Master Vintner kits and want to try one of the "sommelier select" old vine kits.
Northernbrewer.com and
Midwestsupplies.com are with a look too.

 

[GaDawg]

That one place I will not name has a good price, if it is in stock, but I think customer service may have been trained by Comcast.

 

[Redbird1]

That site is blocked here due to some issues in the past. I don't know any of the details, but all references are likely to be removed.

 

[facn1989]

That one place I will not name has a good price, if it is in stock, but I think customer service may have been trained by Comcast.

Just as an FYI, I'm not defending them, but I ordered a RJS En Primeur Rose (currently clearing!). They then called to say they unfortunately don't have it in stock and will contact their supplier ASAP. Then the Florida hurricane happened (they're in FL) and they we're still contacting me while they had bigger problems to take care of. We ended up having the supplier (that has a hub in RI, I'm in CT) ship it to me directly. Got it 2 days later. I personally, have had a great experience with them.

 

[GaDawg]

Glad to know they have got that customer service going

 

[tjgaul]

I've had very good experiences with all the suppliers I have used including labelpeelers, midwest, EC Kraus and southernhb. Pricing and shipping cost is generally comparable and the delivery times have been better than expected. I got one leaker from Midwest and they replaced it promptly, no questions asked.

I am very pleased with the level of service provided by the online kits suppliers.

I too am sliding toward making mostly high end kits, but I would not rule out the 10-12L kits altogether. The first 2 smaller reds I made last year have really come around in the last couple months. I would agree with AZMDTed that the premier kits drink just as well young, but I find it hard to break into them early when I know how much better they will become.

I am slowly replacing the commercial wines in my cellar with my own. It will take some time, but I can see a day in the not too distant future when the cellar will be 85+% homemade. That will be a happy day.

 

[mainshipfred]

I think all kits are too expensive. If you have a couple under your belt I believe juice buckets are the way to go. All they are missing is the yeast and clearing agents which the cost doesn't come close to the price difference of kits. Plus if you bulk age you don't even need the clearing agents. Haven't looked at kit prices in awhile but I bet a 23 liter juice bucket is close to the cost of a 10 liter kit.

 

[GaDawg]

Glad to know they have got that customer service going

I called them on the Oct. 19th and was told the kit I wanted was in stock. So I placed an order. As of this very minute they have my kit on back order. If they had told me it was not available I would have ordered it from another. So much for the good customer service.

 

[rustbucket]

I never got the story with that but I believe it's for a good reason. And their prices ARE actually too good to be true.
I don't know for sure, but I thought it's blocked because they scam. Not positive though.

From what I can gather from old posts on the matter, the former owner threatened to sue WMT for something that was said in this forum. That led to bad blood between the two parties as expected. I personally had a run in with the former owner three years ago when I entered his store and, after looking around at the wine kits I was interested in, inquired as to why his in-store prices were so much more than the on-line prices. The guy started yelling at me, so I walked out without buying anything.

The new owners, who bought the business over a year ago, are very helpful. It's a family run business so the owner's wife usually answers the phone.

 

[GaDawg]

The new owners, who bought the business over a year ago, are very helpful. It's a family run business so the owner's wife usually answers the phone.

Good I will call them in the morning, and I will let you know what they say!

 

[Brian55]

From what I can gather from old posts on the matter, the former owner threatened to sue WMT for something that was said in this forum. That led to bad blood between the two parties as expected. I personally had a run in with the former owner three years ago when I entered his store and, after looking around at the wine kits I was interested in, inquired as to why his in-store prices were so much more than the on-line prices. The guy started yelling at me, so I walked out without buying anything.

The new owners, who bought the business over a year ago, are very helpful. It's a family run business so the owner's wife usually answers the phone.

Are they still shipping with those pink styrofoam packing peanuts from the 80's?

 

[rustbucket]

Are they still shipping with those pink styrofoam packing peanuts from the 80's?

Yes, unfortunately!

 

[GaDawg]

I received an email from them and UPS so my kits are on the way. Good for me and good for them!

 

[Alan tate]

My first year of winemaking I made the wine by the kit instructions, to include bottling at 8 weeks. My oldest batch is a WineXpert Eclipse Lodi Ranch 11 which will be three years next month. I am drinking a couple batches that are over two years now as well, all made by the book. They are excellent wines, really quality wines. The last year and a half I've been bulk aging, barrel aging, extended maceration and going for the extra umph. Too early to tell how much all of that will add to my wine when they reach two or three years. But I can tell you, that if you make high end kits by the book, and let them bottle age, and they're properly degassed, you will have wine that you can be very proud of in two years, and moreso in three.

Make what you can, how you can, then leave some of them alone for a couple years to really see how they shine. Don't fret over what you can't do.

 

[Alan tate]

The most important thing is sterility if your wine is stable and clean bottling should be no problem, the longer it stays the better it will get. I once saw a bottle of mouton rothschild 1893. But i wouldnt drink it #1 it was too expensive, #2 it probably tasted horrible

 

[bkisel]

Labelpeelers is my goto for WineXpert kits. They're next door in Pennsylvania so shipping is only $16 a kit for me. I also like Finevinewines and Morewine for other kits.

Enjoy your new passion, it's addictive.

I live in North Central PA but still pay a lot in shipping when I order from Label Peelers. I wonder why that is?

I like LP sight better than More Wine but find that not having to pay shipping when ordering from More Wine saves me about 20% on average. I sure do like getting the free LP Tees so if an order comes up close between the two I'll opt for LP ev en if it cost me a few bucks.

Sure do miss not having a LHBS within a reasonable driving distance; had one about a 30-40 minute drive from where I lived in CT.

 

[WinoDave]

That's exactly why you should buy a case of 375 ml bottles. And every batch fill up a handful. That way you can pop one open to see how it's progressing without making much of a dent to your batch. I just started doing that and I'm glad I did.