Other Tweeking Cheap Kits

[joeswine]

PHASE# 3 That's it simple quick and ready to go ,I'll let it sit a day and then label, then deliver.

 

[joeswine]

Laxarwolf, good to here from you .
question ,why the coffee beans, no pepper corns, just the berries and the grape fpac sounds good, save the oak for the secondary and not much the fpac and berries will raise the PH enough on their own. Got it? Stay in touch.
Remember a good wine maker always has his or her tools at the ready in their tool box.

 

[Spiros]

Hi guys
I’m almost half way through reading this thread and just want to thank joe for starting it and sharing his wisdom but also everybody else who has contributed.
So I am a total newb to wine making and am reading to absorb as much as I can. I have not read much in regards to when the optimal time to move from primary to secondary and when to halt fermentation. Example I started my Pinot Grigio at 1.100
And am now down to 1.025 when should I move to secondary? How would it effect the end result if I moved too early or too late? When would I halt the fermentation? How would that effect end results if this happened too early or too late?
I apologize for what is probably very basic questions but I’m trying to get as best of an understanding as I can to be able to tweak the process and get the best results I can out of this

 

[sour_grapes]

You have wide latitude on when to move to secondary. Personally, I like to transfer at about 1.005 or so. However, some let it go almost dry in primary before transferring.

You speak of halting fermentation. What do you have in mind here? The home winemaker doesn't really have a way of stopping an active fermentation. Your best bet is to let it ferment to completely dry. If you feel the need to sweeten ("backsweeten") after this, you should add potassium sorbate (and potassium metabisulfite) in the recommended doses.

 

[Darrell Hawley]

Ok for the cheap wine kit doers out there this is the process for the Chardonnay kit ,yield 23 bottles... be prepared be patient that's the trick.
phase #1

Joe, the Chardonnay kit is in the secondary right now to finish up the fermentation. After I put in the Kieselsol and clear the lees, I want to split the wine and put the grapefruit zest in one. About how much zest do I use in a 2 1/2 - 3 gallons and how long should it stay in? Looking forward to tasting the difference one they are completely done.

 

[joeswine]

Hi Darrel , 1 full teaspoon of Grapefruit zest, let it sit for 1 week then proceed at your own time frame,.
the zest should add a brightness and acidity to the finish. ( lemon zest can be used also ) ,grapefruit preferred.

 

[laxarwolf]

Laxarwolf, good to here from you .
question ,why the coffee beans, no pepper corns, just the berries and the grape fpac sounds good, save the oak for the secondary and not much the fpac and berries will raise the PH enough on their own. Got it? Stay in touch.
Remember a good wine maker always has his or her tools at the ready in their tool box.

Got it. Just was reading about port... and adding coffee beans. I was hoping to get some of the coffee and pepper notes that I associate with a great Shiraz

 

[laxarwolf]

@ joeswine
also ordered a cheap chardonnay kit 11.5% from wine lovers. My sister likes buttery chardonnay. Any tips or ideas for me...I am aware of battonage and adding a MLB after primary fermentation. I thought a cheap kit would be a great way to attempt to make that buttery flavor...

 

[cmason1957]

@ joeswine
also ordered a cheap chardonnay kit 11.5% from wine lovers. My sister likes buttery chardonnay. Any tips or ideas for me...I am aware of battonage and adding a MLB after primary fermentation. I thought a cheap kit would be a great way to attempt to make that buttery flavor...

If it is a wine kit, MLF is NOT recommended. It might not start and even if it does, it will leave you with a dull, lifeless wine. Someone did do MLF on a wine kit and had a thread about it a few months ago, I believe they were mostly disappointed with how it turned out.

 

[joeswine]

Laxarwolf, on the chardonnay , I've never liked the standard chad. so here/s what I would suggest is to buy a bottle of Frances Ford copula's ,chardonnay ,that's my style for about $12.00 dollars= smooth ,crisp and very chardonnay with out all the wood.
or follow the process above only using 1 tablespoon of tannins in the primary and the grapefruit zest.
You won't be disappointed.. no MLF for kits. not needed.

 

[joeswine]

spiros . let time do it's function walk away and let the yeast work if you want to remove the wine a little early you can just remember its going to take a little loner and more on your part. or just walk away.

 

[DizzyIzzy]

Anyone....................what is MLB? Malolactic bacteria?

 

[cmason1957]

Anyone....................what is MLB? Malolactic bacteria?

Yes, it is a bacteria added to facilitate the conversion of sharp green apple tasting malic acid to smoother lactic acid + CO2. It is not advised to be done to wine kits. You may not be able to get it to start and even if you do, you will be left with a dull, lifeless result. Wine kits come out of the gate pre-balanced to the final acid level.

 

[DizzyIzzy]

Yes, it is a bacteria added to facilitate the conversion of sharp green apple tasting malic acid to smoother lactic acid + CO2. It is not advised to be done to wine kits. You may not be able to get it to start and even if you do, you will be left with a dull, lifeless result. Wine kits come out of the gate pre-balanced to the final acid level.

Thanks for the speedyreply cmason

 

[Spiros]

So I will be starting my first kit of red this weekend it’s a cru international Pinot noir kit, getting a really good deal on this kit so I’m going for it. Now it’s a 12L kit with grape skins so I’m gonna make the full 6 gallons. I plan on adding 1 tbsp of tannin to the primary and was thinking of making a 1lb fruit pack of either blue berry or blackberry, what would go better with a Pinot noir?
This kit also comes with med oak and am wondering if I should put everything into primary or should I save the oak for either the secondary or maybe clearing/bulk aging?

 

[RocketBee]

@Spiros ... below is a quote from the boss I found regarding Pinot Noir. Hopefully it will help. Now, I know a little more than nothing, but regarding primary or secondary with the oak, I'm guessing that @joeswine would ask you whether you want the oak in the foreground or background...if the former then primary, if the latter try the secondary.

pino nior profiles

lets talk for a moment about profiles especially a pino noirs,imagine if you will this in your glass

PINOT NIOR, elevated aromas of plum,red cherries, bitter collocate,and spice define the intense varietal character of this full body wine. Fermented on Hungarian oak with winery grade yeast ,the palate is rich and oaky, supported by blackberries and herb flavors layered over silky,integrated tannins.
what I was trying to get at on the cheap wines thread was that a wines profile is what it is understanding how to get there is another story all together, cheap kit, moderately price kit or top of the line ,it doesn't matter ,once you have the basics down to a science then it's play time just like every master wine maker out there they start with a base (good or not so good even excellent vintage) and develop the flavor profile from that point forward, we can do the same thing only we need to improvise or as we call it tweaking. They do it on a very large scale compared to us, but they do it all the same. NOW go back and read that profile does that sound thin to you??

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[joeswine]

Spiors, something different comes your way.
Pino, blueberry in the primary,no oak.
Do you know how to prepare my style of fpac? If so move ahead.if not read making an fpac.
Your plan is , bentonite, base, fpac and yeast in that order.

 

[Spiros]

Spiors, something different comes your way.
Pino, blueberry in the primary,no oak.
Do you know how to prepare my style of fpac? If so move ahead.if not read making an fpac.
Your plan is , bentonite, base, fpac and yeast in that order.

Yes Joe I’m almost done reading all 112 pages of this thread so I see and really like the way you make your fpacs, will do this exactly. But just for clarification when you say no oak do you mean no oak? Or no oak in the primary?
also thank you both for your replies

 

[Spiros]

1 more question if you don’t mind joe, I’ve looked at all of your picture tutorials on here and if I view the pics in order it looks like your measuring sg before you add your fpacs, is this the way you do this or are you measuring after the fpac is added?

 

[joeswine]

Spiros. No oak on the pino.
Both sometimes (SG)I like to see the before and after ,for cause and effect. This allows me to control the process understand, then I'll know in the future what to expect More or less
Got it