Finer Wine Kit Finer Wine Kits

[wineview]

Not necessarily so. Inflation since the beginning of COVID has been ugly.

This doesn't mean I trust any entity to be honest, but some things are beyond control.

I don’t think this has anything to do with Covid. I quoted prices one year apart. Last year $90 this year $120. That’s $30 more for the same product advertised being a special 40% off.sale.

 

[szap]

It’s all smoke and mirrors. In May of 2023 I purchased a FWK Petite Sirah for $90.26. This May with 40% off it’s $120.81. Quite a difference.

Exactly. Always a higher starting point on most everything LP shows 40% off.

 

[bstnh1]

Exactly. Always a higher starting point on most everything LP shows 40% off.

I checked a couple of my local brew shops and the regular price on the WE kits on Label Peelers is higher than the retail price in the locals. When you add the shipping cost to the LP sales price, you're better off buying them locally.

 

[wineview]

I checked a couple of my local brew shops and the regular price on the WE kits on Label Peelers is higher than the retail price in the locals. When you add the shipping cost to the LP sales price, you're better off buying them locally.

If you can get them locally

 

[Rocky]

True, inflation has been very high. But when a price increases 50% or more, it's greed and price gouging on top of inflation. Some of the grocery price increases are just plain ridiculous.

I agree with you, Brian. I do most of the shopping for our family and I don't know where these published "inflation" numbers are coming from or how they are calculated. I would say that prices at the grocery store are up by more than 100% over the past 2-3 years. Even "sale" prices are significantly more than the regular price was only a couple years ago.

 

[winemaker81]

If you can get them locally

That is the unfortunate reality for many people. When I buy kits other than FWK, I buy from my LHBS which is 40 minutes away. I count myself fortunate that I have that option.

 

[wineview]

That is the unfortunate reality for many people. When I buy kits other than FWK, I buy from my LHBS which is 40 minutes away. I count myself fortunate that I have that option.

What other kits do you like?

 

[winemaker81]

What other kits do you like?

Of the brands still in existence, Winexpert and RJ Spagnols.

 

[DavesWine]

I've started taking screenshots of the prices of FWK kits since the middle of 2022 as I wanted to watch how the prices went up with the rapid inflation we've been having. Since the middle of 2022, the prices on the kits have gone up 11.5% using their MSRP.

 

[Bmd2k1]

I'm hoping my FWK Chardonnay ages exceptionally well -- as I wasn't a fan of it at bottling --- somewhat harsh compared to other Chard's I've made using same protocol. Time will tell. ;-)

On the flip side -- my FWK Zinfandel I just bottled is absolutely delishhh! (2nd time making this....)

Cheers!

Well.....two months in the bottle....cracked the 1st one and sampled. Yuck! Basically undrinkable at this point. Poured out the rest of the bottle :-(

By contrast, MV Chard I made at the same time, with same protocol -- was Amazing!

Very disappointed in the FWK Chard -- will stick with the FWK Red's moving forward.


Cheers!

 

[GretchenR]

Well.....two months in the bottle....cracked the 1st one and sampled. Yuck! Basically undrinkable at this point. Poured out the rest of the bottle :-(

By contrast, MV Chard I made at the same time, with same protocol -- was Amazing!

Very disappointed in the FWK Chard -- will stick with the FWK Red's moving forward.


Cheers!

I haven't made the FWK Chardonnay but I have made their Riesling. I didn't care for it at all for the first few months, but a year later I quite liked it, enough that I made it a second time and kept it for a year in bulk before bottling. So maybe give your Chardonnay a year in a closet somewhere and try it again.

 

[winemaker81]

Well.....two months in the bottle....cracked the 1st one and sampled. Yuck! Basically undrinkable at this point. Poured out the rest of the bottle :-(

By contrast, MV Chard I made at the same time, with same protocol -- was Amazing!

Very disappointed in the FWK Chard -- will stick with the FWK Red's moving forward.

The FWK Chardonnay is too young, and it's different quality than the MV Chardonnay.

I made a WE Australian Chardonnay for my son's reception -- great at the 14 month mark when it was first served, but was fizzling by the following summer (20 months?).

Early on the FWK Chardonnay was heavy in quality -- it makes me think of one I had that was fermented on the skins. However, it was better at the 18 month mark and was doing fine at 24+ months when the last bottle was consumed.

Give it more time. Not sayin' you're gonna love it a year from now, but time will improve it.

I haven't made the FWK Chardonnay but I have made their Riesling. I didn't care for it at all for the first few months, but a year later I quite liked it, enough that I made it a second time and kept it for a year in bulk before bottling. So maybe give your Chardonnay a year in a closet somewhere and try it again.

My son made the FWK Riesling a few years ago, it was pre-carbon (I think). I had some recently and it was quite good, better than it had been.

Having recently fermented a white on the skins for the first time in decades, my current thought is the FWK concentration process produces white concentrate that is more like a red. This is not everyone's taste, and it does take more time to age as it's a heavier wine.

 

[Bmd2k1]

The FWK Chardonnay is too young, and it's different quality than the MV Chardonnay.

I made a WE Australian Chardonnay for my son's reception -- great at the 14 month mark when it was first served, but was fizzling by the following summer (20 months?).

Early on the FWK Chardonnay was heavy in quality -- it makes me think of one I had that was fermented on the skins. However, it was better at the 18 month mark and was doing fine at 24+ months when the last bottle was consumed.

Give it more time. Not sayin' you're gonna love it a year from now, but time will improve it.



My son made the FWK Riesling a few years ago, it was pre-carbon (I think). I had some recently and it was quite good, better than it had been.

Having recently fermented a white on the skins for the first time in decades, my current thought is the FWK concentration process produces white concentrate that is more like a red. This is not everyone's taste, and it does take more time to age as it's a heavier wine.

guess I pack it away till mid-2025! lol

 

[winemaker81]

guess I pack it away till mid-2025! lol

It's what we tell the beginners: Patience, Grasshopper!

I suggest you open a bottle every 3 months and record your impressions. One you hit the 1 year mark from now, publish your notes as a primer for others.

 

[wineview]

Going to start a FWK Sangiovese/Cab Sauv. I’d like to do an extended maceration, maybe 3-4 weeks and add an extra package of seeds. Anyone see any issues with this plan?

 

[Gilmango]

Going to start a FWK Sangiovese/Cab Sauv. I’d like to do an extended maceration, maybe 3-4 weeks and add an extra package of seeds. Anyone see any issues with this plan?

As long as you can seal your primary with the skins and seeds in it before it reaches final gravity (so you have some CO2 protection during extended maceration) then 3-4 weeks of EM is not too long.

The extra seeds seem a bit odd to me, I suppose they will give the wine some extra tannin, astringency, and 'structure' or grip? Personally I'd just use the normal Forte amounts of skins and seeds, then taste over time as it bulk ages and determine from tasting if I want to add any aging or finishing tannins or oak.

EDIT - Here's a good read on all things tannin (including skins and seeds) with some ideas on when to add things: https://winemakermag.com/wine-wizard/sacrificial-tannins-explained I suppose the added seeds could function a bit like sacrificial oak, but I'd rather add more of the oak chips if that was the goal, especially given their "oxygen sink" features which could help during EM. I don't think seeds are an oxygen sink in the same way but could be wrong.

 

[wineview]

So snap the lid at around 1.010?

 

[wineview]

I started the Sangiovese cab kit. Typically I rinse the bag and all the remaining juice flows out easily. This time there was quite a bit of residue stuck to the inside of the bag and took three rinses and a lot of shaking to get everything out. My first thought was this is an old bag of juice that has been laying in the back of a refrigerator. After a closer look at the bag, I found a date stamped . 5/10/22. Photo enclosed. Is it possible that Label Peelers offers 40% off on kits that are over two years old? You will need to tap on the photo and expand to get a good look at the date. Love to hear your thoughts.

 

[Sailor323]

Very disappointed in the FWK Chard -- will stick with the FWK Red's moving forward.


Cheers!

I have made FWK Sauv Bl, 4 Blanc, Cheverny and Chard. I don't care Chard in general, but the FWK Chard was OK, much like Chard from other producers. The Sauv Bl, 4 Blanc and the Cheverny are all excellent. I've also made the FWK Rosé which is excellent but not better than RJS Rosé.

 

[Christopher Anderson]

True, inflation has been very high. But when a price increases 50% or more, it's greed and price gouging on top of inflation. Some of the grocery price increases are just plain ridiculous.

Not the company's issue/problem/gouging. Time are tough for most companies. so they Shrinkflate to keep the costs the same. Inflation, rising costs of basic goods, much higher labor costs (McDonalds is now starting at $17.00/hr in Central Texas), and some new import fees on many items have caused spikes in everything.