RJ Spagnols Cellar Classic Australian Cabernet
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Yes... The RJS? This was my first wine. Drinking well after a year.
Had a difficult time getting it below an SG of 0.995 from what I recall.
Had a difficult time getting it below an SG of 0.995 from what I recall.
If your fermentation is still going, let it roll and see where it lands. Be patient. I got antsy and tried adding nutrient and fresh yeast. But, I think if I just left it be, I'd have gotten the same result.
Are you stirring your bucket and punching down your skins everyday? It will help your wine is a bunch of ways - with fermentation, body, nose and flavor.
As with all the higher-end red kits, this one takes time. I started drinking it about 8 months in. I wish it had a bigger nose (I didn't stir it every day... Didn't know better). But, it was good at 8 months and has been improving since. I used a few bottles to top off some blends and drank more than a few - I think I have 14 of the 750's and a 1.5 down in the basement.
It's got a nice structure to it. Fairly complex. I'm drinking the Eclipse SLD Merlot and the occasional Super Tuscan (to see if it's ready) and Enigma. It's #2 to the Eclipse. Though the ST is coming up fast (a young Winexpert LE).
I pretty much followed the directions on the kit. I didn't add the sorbate. I like the flavor and that I got no KT. This was the first wine that my wife said, "wow, this is really good." She thinks it's as good as the Merlot, but, I'm skeptical.
I've got an Eclipse Lodi Cab aging now. To me, that will be the comparison to do. But, it's at least 10 months away. Whether it's because I'm more comfortable with winemaking or that the Eclipse is top of the line, I'm thinking I'll like it better than the RJS.
This is a thread on mine:
http://www.winemakingtalk.com/forum/showthread.php?t=49110
Are you stirring your bucket and punching down your skins everyday? It will help your wine is a bunch of ways - with fermentation, body, nose and flavor.
As with all the higher-end red kits, this one takes time. I started drinking it about 8 months in. I wish it had a bigger nose (I didn't stir it every day... Didn't know better). But, it was good at 8 months and has been improving since. I used a few bottles to top off some blends and drank more than a few - I think I have 14 of the 750's and a 1.5 down in the basement.
It's got a nice structure to it. Fairly complex. I'm drinking the Eclipse SLD Merlot and the occasional Super Tuscan (to see if it's ready) and Enigma. It's #2 to the Eclipse. Though the ST is coming up fast (a young Winexpert LE).
I pretty much followed the directions on the kit. I didn't add the sorbate. I like the flavor and that I got no KT. This was the first wine that my wife said, "wow, this is really good." She thinks it's as good as the Merlot, but, I'm skeptical.
I've got an Eclipse Lodi Cab aging now. To me, that will be the comparison to do. But, it's at least 10 months away. Whether it's because I'm more comfortable with winemaking or that the Eclipse is top of the line, I'm thinking I'll like it better than the RJS.
This is a thread on mine:
http://www.winemakingtalk.com/forum/showthread.php?t=49110
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Hey jgmann,
My wine is ready to bottle today...I tried it and it is a much drier wine than I anticipated. Did yours end up dry as well? I wish I would have known to punch down the bag of skins. But, evem at this stage it is a good wine. The first kit of mine that has turned out, although the last 2 kits were real cheap kits. Its going to be hard to wait to drink
My wine is ready to bottle today...I tried it and it is a much drier wine than I anticipated. Did yours end up dry as well? I wish I would have known to punch down the bag of skins. But, evem at this stage it is a good wine. The first kit of mine that has turned out, although the last 2 kits were real cheap kits. Its going to be hard to wait to drink
Hey jgmann,
My wine is ready to bottle today...I tried it and it is a much drier wine than I anticipated. Did yours end up dry as well? I wish I would have known to punch down the bag of skins. But, evem at this stage it is a good wine. The first kit of mine that has turned out, although the last 2 kits were real cheap kits. Its going to be hard to wait to drink
Are you sure you're ready to bottle? Once it's in the bottle, well... It's done and once it's in the bottle you'll have a difficult time keeping your hands off of it.
I made that same mistake and only punched down a couple times during primary fermentation. What was your FG? The nose isn't very big at all, but it tastes excellent. I was only able to ferment down to 0.995.
If it's properly degassed and you're satisfied with the flavor profile, then bottle and tuck most of it away where you can't get to it.
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It is definitely properly degassed. I had that problem with the first two wines, but it seems that transferring into the bucket to degas as opposed to the carboy makes a huge difference.
As far as the final gravity, I ended at .992. It took so much longer to ferment than the other 2 wines, and I even insulated this wine to increase the temperature. Must just be something with this wine I am assuming.
What would the benefit be to bulk aging vs aging in the bottle? I am concerned about oxidation. I think this was the problem with my last batch as it tasted wonderful, and than I let it bulk age which than it tasted flat after a few months. I didn't know to top up though either. Plus, I really want to get going on another batch and between me and the boyfriend doing beer, we don't have any spare carboys hanging around
As far as the final gravity, I ended at .992. It took so much longer to ferment than the other 2 wines, and I even insulated this wine to increase the temperature. Must just be something with this wine I am assuming.
What would the benefit be to bulk aging vs aging in the bottle? I am concerned about oxidation. I think this was the problem with my last batch as it tasted wonderful, and than I let it bulk age which than it tasted flat after a few months. I didn't know to top up though either. Plus, I really want to get going on another batch and between me and the boyfriend doing beer, we don't have any spare carboys hanging around
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As far as the final gravity, I ended at .992. It took so much longer to ferment than the other 2 wines, and I even insulated this wine to increase the temperature. Must just be something with this wine I am assuming.
What would the benefit be to bulk aging vs aging in the bottle? I am concerned about oxidation. I think this was the problem with my last batch as it tasted wonderful, and than I let it bulk age which than it tasted flat after a few months. I didn't know to top up though either. Plus, I really want to get going on another batch and between me and the boyfriend doing beer, we don't have any spare carboys hanging around
0.992 is good and dry (only 0.002 to absolute zero).
There is a lot of debate on this site about whether it makes a difference doing extended bulk aging. I think it comes down to this: once you've done what needs to be done re: degassing and tweaking to taste, the benefits (if they can be quantified), will be on the margins. I will let a wine sit for 6 months (others will go substantially longer) with no fear of oxidation - just remember to minimize headspace and keep the airlock topped with vodka. The greatest benefits to bulk aging: you'll know better what you're going to get in the end AND it prevents you from digging in too soon.
One carboy will become 4 in short order... Then 8. Right now I have 5 wines in carboys and just bottled a summer wine. Still have 1 glass and 3 plastic carboys available. I could probably use another glass one...
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