Finer Wine Kit Finer Wine Kits

[X45011]

Bottled the FWK Riesling yesterday. In case you are worried about the carbon, it turned out great and already tastes very good.

 

[Xlev]

Hei @Matteo_Lahm any plans of making FWK available in Europe?

 

[Shurt1073]

Bottled the FWK Riesling yesterday. In case you are worried about the carbon, it turned out great and already tastes very good.

I have a FWK in the refrig to make in March, which will be my first dealing with CARBON and I'm like a kid at Christmas. I can't wait until March to start the FWK and knowing its already at my house waiting on me adds to the excitement! I was told to be careful and don't splash.

 

[winemaker81]

I have a FWK in the refrig to make in March, which will be my first dealing with CARBON and I'm like a kid at Christmas. I can't wait until March to start the FWK and knowing its already at my house waiting on me adds to the excitement! I was told to be careful and don't splash.

Get your wife to help -- one stirs gently while the other sprinkles the carbon into the must. Go slow and it's not a problem.

 

[wineview]

I have a FWK in the refrig to make in March, which will be my first dealing with CARBON and I'm like a kid at Christmas. I can't wait until March to start the FWK and knowing its already at my house waiting on me adds to the excitement! I was told to be careful and don't splash.

I just made a FWK Chardonnay and the carbon took me by surprise. My first white with FWK. I treated it the same way as bentonite. Slow and easy and warm water is better than cold. When I snapped the lid of the bucket, the must was still black. I’m interested to see what happens when I rack in about 15 days or so.

 

[winemaker81]

I just made a FWK Chardonnay and the carbon took me by surprise. My first white with FWK. I treated it the same way as bentonite. Slow and easy and warm water is better than cold. When I snapped the lid of the bucket, the must was still black. I’m interested to see what happens when I rack in about 15 days or so.

Post-fermentation my Chardonnay was pretty black, but the K&C knocked it out.

 

[SouthernVino]

I have a FWK in the refrig to make in March, which will be my first dealing with CARBON and I'm like a kid at Christmas. I can't wait until March to start the FWK and knowing its already at my house waiting on me adds to the excitement! I was told to be careful and don't splash.

J

I have a FWK in the refrig to make in March, which will be my first dealing with CARBON and I'm like a kid at Christmas. I can't wait until March to start the FWK and knowing its already at my house waiting on me adds to the excitement! I was told to be careful and don't splash.

Also, make sure your fermenting bucket is big enough for foam-up. Otherwise, you will regret it.

 

[wineview]

J

Also, make sure your fermenting bucket is big enough for foam-up. Otherwise, you will regret it.

Foam up is no problem

 

[jgmann67]

My FWK Tavola Merlot (2 bags or skins, extra M+ toast oak) is about 19 months old and really hitting its stride. Went very well with pizza night (during prep and with finished pizza).

 

[Shurt1073]

My FWK Tavola Merlot (2 bags or skins, extra M+ toast oak) is about 19 months old and really hitting its stride. Went very well with pizza night (during prep and with finished pizza).

That is awesome. Did you bulk age, just bottle or both?

 

[jgmann67]

That is awesome. Did you bulk age, just bottle or both?

I bottled at 9 months.

 

[wineview]

I bottled at 9 months.

How was it at 9 months

 

[bstnh1]

Has anyone noticed any difference the carbon makes other than color?

 

[winemaker81]

Has anyone noticed any difference the carbon makes other than color?

I made the Sauvignon Blanc and Strawberry with carbon. Since I have nothing to compare them against, I can't provide useful feedback regarding how they compare to non-carbon wines.

However, the color of the SB is ok. It's a bit darker than I'd expect, but the aroma and taste are great. The strawberry is dark anyway, FAR darker than anything I've made or had from fresh berries, so the carbon may not honestly be necessary.

Both wines came out good, so I have no complaints.

 

[jgmann67]

How was it at 9 months

I remember being very happy with it at bottling time. It was a little rough around the edges, but tasty. Those rough edges have since smoothed out.

I use an AIO pump to rack my wines. At 9 months, the wine has been racked at least 3 times. All the CO2 is gone and the wine is crystal clear. I don't have a reason to keep it in bulk any longer than a year (really, I feel like I'm borrowing trouble the longer it takes to bottle).

 

[jgmann67]

Has anyone noticed any difference the carbon makes other than color?

I understand that Carbon can be added to remove off-flavors or smells from wine, while helping a white wine maintain its light color (or conversely, stripping a red wine of some of its color).

I cleared my FWK chardonnay and was struck by the light straw color. After dropping a spiral of oak in it, it looks more like the chards I've done previously (like the Sonoma Dry Creek from WE). On the other hand, the WE Luna Bianca is a super dark chard blend. Even after a few weeks on the oak spiral, the FWK Chard isn't nearly as dark as that one. I'll taste this one in a couple months when it's time to rack again. I recall the flavor as being like tart apple and citrus.

The Grenache Rose also comes with carbon. This is my wife's summer wine. At bottling, I got a "wow, that's really good now."

 

[winemaker81]

I cleared my FWK chardonnay and was struck by the light straw color. After dropping a spiral of oak in it, it looks more like the chards I've done previously (like the Sonoma Dry Creek from WE). On the other hand, the WE Luna Bianca is a super dark chard blend. Even after a few weeks on the oak spiral, the FWK Chard isn't nearly as dark as that one. I'll taste this one in a couple months when it's time to rack again. I recall the flavor as being like tart apple and citrus.

I've made Luna Bianca twice, and it's darker, even before adding the F-Pack.

Honestly, I get more concerned about light colors in red kits than I do dark colors in white kits.

 

[justsipn]

I just started my first FWK. I'm doing the Forte series Pinot Noir. I just racked it out of primary and into the carboy. It had double skins along with oak chips and cubes.

Question. Do you really taste a difference because these kits aren't pasteurized?

Also, do you think the oak cubes they send are as good as using an oak stick I can buy separately? That said, would it be over oaking it if I added the stick with the cubes that came with the kit? I'll rack it again in a a couple weeks and am thinking about adding a stick of medium toast American Oak.

 

[Brian55]

I just started my first FWK. I'm doing the Forte series Pinot Noir. I just racked it out of primary and into the carboy. It had double skins along with oak chips and cubes.

Question. Do you really taste a difference because these kits aren't pasteurized?

Also, do you think the oak cubes they send are as good as using an oak stick I can buy separately? That said, would it be over oaking it if I added the stick with the cubes that came with the kit? I'll rack it again in a a couple weeks and am thinking about adding a stick of medium toast American Oak.

Yes, you can really taste the difference, also the nose is much more pronounced.

I would skip the extra oak on a Pinot Noir. Maybe save the stick for a bolder red that can handle extra oak.

 

[JohnW]

Yes, you can really taste the difference, also the nose is much more pronounced.

I would skip the extra oak on a Pinot Noir. Maybe save the stick for a bolder red that can handle extra oak.

I would also have also advised you to only go with one pack of skins. I started the Pinot kit a year ago and believe it will be another year before the tannins mellow.