New Winemaker Equipment

[rlynge]

Good morning, everyone!

I am a long time homebrewer who took about a two year hiatus due to the arrival of my daughter and am looking to get back into the fermentation sciences. I had previously sold all of my beer brewing supplies and have decided to move into the wine making realm as both my wife and I really enjoy wine whereas I am the only one that enjoys beer.

Anyhow, I am trying to determine what the best equipment kit to purchase would be. In my research, I have found that the Deluxe Vintners Best Winemakers Kit w/ Plastic Carboy from Adventures in homebrewing looks to be the best option and deal however I thought I would run it by the group to see what everyone else's thoughts are. Aside from chemicals, bottles and other miscellaneous items, I feel this covers many of the items I will need. I should notate that our first several batches of wine will be from Kits.

What are your thoughts? Is this the Kit to get? Do you have a better suggestion? Is there other major pieces missing that is needed.

 

[pgentile]

Good morning, everyone!

I am a long time homebrewer who took about a two year hiatus due to the arrival of my daughter and am looking to get back into the fermentation sciences. I had previously sold all of my beer brewing supplies and have decided to move into the wine making realm as both my wife and I really enjoy wine whereas I am the only one that enjoys beer.

Anyhow, I am trying to determine what the best equipment kit to purchase would be. In my research, I have found that the Deluxe Vintners Best Winemakers Kit w/ Plastic Carboy from Adventures in homebrewing looks to be the best option and deal however I thought I would run it by the group to see what everyone else's thoughts are. Aside from chemicals, bottles and other miscellaneous items, I feel this covers many of the items I will need. I should notate that our first several batches of wine will be from Kits.

What are your thoughts? Is this the Kit to get? Do you have a better suggestion? Is there other major pieces missing that is needed.

This is fine for starting out with kits. But be forewarned this hobby can be addictive and before you know it, you'll need more carboys, larger fermenting vessels, floor corker, etc, etc.

Good luck and welcome.

 

[richmke]

Don't buy. Don't buy.

If you keep up in the hobby, you will eventually have:
Glass Carboys
Floor Corker (italian or portuguese)
All-in-one Wine Pump (can work with plastic carboys, but better with the glass ones).

This one has a glass carboy.
https://www.homebrewing.org/Vintners-Best-Wine-Making-Equipment-Kit-wglass-carboy_p_6060.html
All you need to add is the floor corker.
https://www.homebrewing.org/Portuguese-Floor-Corker_p_504.html
Although, I do believe the Burgundy model is a little better (3" taller). Don't know where you can find it.

 

[rlynge]

This is fine for starting out with kits. But be forewarned this hobby can be addictive and before you know it, you'll need more carboys, larger fermenting vessels, floor corker, etc, etc.

Good luck and welcome.

Thank you, pgentile! I tend to have pretty good self control when it comes to equipment acquisition syndrome. Having homebrewed for 10 years, I made it a point to keep it under control for the sake of my marriage.

 

[rlynge]

Don't buy. Don't buy.

If you keep up in the hobby, you will eventually have:
Glass Carboys
Floor Corker (italian or portuguese)
All-in-one Wine Pump (can work with plastic carboys, but better with the glass ones).

If you can find a kit with glass carboy, and floor corker, that is the one to get.

Adventures in homebrewing does have a kit with a glass carboy however it sacrifices several items from this kit. Also, I don't think I have seen a kit that includes a floor corker, unfortunately.

 

[Ajmassa]

I gotta agree with richmke. Plus if you stick with this forum for the kit venture, which I recommend, then you have plenty of time to secure a floor corker. Not just the 6/8/10 weeks like the kit suggests. But that’s a whole other convo.
Many times I’ve purchased a cheaper/smaller piece of equipment, not sure I wanted to make a larger investment just yet— and then ended up buying the proper one soon after anyway.
I have 3 plastic 5gal carboys. They just sit there collecting dust. Never even been filled with wine.

 

[Mismost]

Craigslist is your friend. People jump in and out of this hobby....like you did brewing. All my gear was bought for pennies on the dollar, not retail price.
Just a thought.

 

[rlynge]

Craigslist is your friend. People jump in and out of this hobby....like you did brewing. All my gear was bought for pennies on the dollar, not retail price.
Just a thought.

Yeah, I gave that some thought however that would mean I have to piece everything together over time. However, I know that craigslist is a good option for gathering additional carboys and such relatively inexpensively.

 

[pgentile]

Yeah, I gave that some thought however that would mean I have to piece everything together over time. However, I know that craigslist is a good option for gathering additional carboys and such relatively inexpensively.

Craiglist is how I gather most of my stuff, sometimes someone is selling everything you need to start sometimes not. There is no right or wrong with new or second hand. Some don't like plastic carboys, others have no issues with them.

 

[rlynge]

Craiglist is how I gather most of my stuff, sometimes someone is selling everything you need to start sometimes not. There is no right or wrong with new or second hand. Some don't like plastic carboys, others have no issues with them.

I used quite a bit if plastic when brewing beer however I didn't store beer in it near as long as wine. Does anyone know how long one can store wine in a Plastic Carboy without detriment?

 

[mainshipfred]

I don't use them but the Pet carboys are made for wine making so they shouldn't be a problem. I'm with everyone else about Craigslist if you have the time or energy. The basic equipment is similar to beer making so you already know what you need.

 

[dralarms]

Gotta warm you, once you get a car boy wet it seems to multiply. Welcome to winemakingtalk. Great bunch of folks here. We’re all here to learn.

 

[Venatorscribe]

A

Thank you, pgentile! I tend to have pretty good self control when it comes to equipment acquisition syndrome. Having homebrewed for 10 years, I made it a point to keep it under control for the sake of my marriage.

Add a bottle tree to your list. A viral tool that you won't really appreciate until you use.

 

[bstnh1]

Don't buy. Don't buy.

If you keep up in the hobby, you will eventually have:
Glass Carboys
Floor Corker (italian or portuguese)
All-in-one Wine Pump (can work with plastic carboys, but better with the glass ones).

This one has a glass carboy.
https://www.homebrewing.org/Vintners-Best-Wine-Making-Equipment-Kit-wglass-carboy_p_6060.html
All you need to add is the floor corker.
https://www.homebrewing.org/Portuguese-Floor-Corker_p_504.html
Although, I do believe the Burgundy model is a little better (3" taller). Don't know where you can find it.

Agree to all but the glass carboys. Glass carboys are heavy, fragile and make an ungodly mess when they break - not to mention the loss of 6 gallons of wine!

 

[rlynge]

Thank you to everyone!

I appreciate all of the feedback and hope to put it to good use.

 

[richmke]

Yeah, I gave that some thought however that would mean I have to piece everything together over time. However, I know that craigslist is a good option for gathering additional carboys and such relatively inexpensively.

All you need right now are:
Pail
Carboy
Hydrometer
Small auto siphon & Tubing (I recommend the small because you can use the small one to transfer from the wine kit bag to the pail)

You have a few months to watch craigslist for a floor corker and more carboys

Add a bottle tree to your list. A viral tool that you won't really appreciate until you use.

I love the Fastrack: https://www.homebrewing.org/2-FastRack-Wine-and-1-Tray_p_4359.html
Also great for letting single bottles dry after you use them.
If you have sheet pans or broiler pans for your oven, you can use them for the drip tray on bottling days, and save a few bucks. Make sure you get the wine bottle version. The beer bottle version will work, and is great if you start doing dessert wines and 375ml bottles.

 

[winemaker81]

I recommend buying locally when you can. For heavy items it saves on shipping, and when you need something now, a short drive will get it.

I lucked out, I have one shop 5 minutes from my office and another 5 minutes from home.

 

[mainshipfred]

Good morning, everyone!

I am a long time homebrewer who took about a two year hiatus due to the arrival of my daughter and am looking to get back into the fermentation sciences. I had previously sold all of my beer brewing supplies and have decided to move into the wine making realm as both my wife and I really enjoy wine whereas I am the only one that enjoys beer.

Anyhow, I am trying to determine what the best equipment kit to purchase would be. In my research, I have found that the Deluxe Vintners Best Winemakers Kit w/ Plastic Carboy from Adventures in homebrewing looks to be the best option and deal however I thought I would run it by the group to see what everyone else's thoughts are. Aside from chemicals, bottles and other miscellaneous items, I feel this covers many of the items I will need. I should notate that our first several batches of wine will be from Kits.

What are your thoughts? Is this the Kit to get? Do you have a better suggestion? Is there other major pieces missing that is needed.

What part of the world do you live. There may be someone close that has extra equipment.

 

[rlynge]

What part of the world do you live. There may be someone close that has extra equipment.

I live in Tampa, FL!

I have a LHBS near me that sells beer and winemaking equipment as well. They have a brewpub as well so I make frequent visits however I will be purchasing this equipment using a digital gift card so that is why I was initially looking at on line kits.

 

[mainshipfred]

I live in Tampa, FL!

I have a LHBS near me that sells beer and winemaking equipment as well. They have a brewpub as well so I make frequent visits however I will be purchasing this equipment using a digital gift card so that is why I was initially looking at on line kits.

Makes perfect sense to use the gift card and get the equipment kit.