Other Tweeking Cheap Kits

[joeswine]

Pino noir,no rose petals ,if you use can cherries then wash the canning material off them,heat them up with a cup of the pino and slide them into the pool.berries are also a good choice.If you find yourself having to use a gallon container to hold the extra then so be it ,then when your ready to either bottle or add chemistry back into the pool mix well, then separate again.Got it! And always THINK OUTSIDE THE BOX

 

[Zintrigue]

I was going to use frozen cherries without sugar added - already pitted and ready to go. Will go with your suggestion and heat with the pinot. Thanks

 

[joeswine]

What's the volume of cherries ? Your putting into the mix.?

 

[Zintrigue]

What's the volume of cherries ? Your putting into the mix.?

Each bag is only 12 oz, so probably either two or three bags, 24 oz or 36 oz. (around 2 lbs) Might get wild and consider cranberries or raspberries, too, but don't want to over do it.

 

[joeswine]

No cranberries,stay will about 1lb for a 5 or 6 gallon batch more doesn't make it better you need to look at balance, however it's your wine have fun at all times.

 

[Zintrigue]

No cranberries,stay will about 1lb for a 5 or 6 gallon batch more doesn't make it better you need to look at balance, however it's your wine have fun at all times.

The whole process is always fun for me. But even more fun when it's successful, so your advice is much appreciated. Thanks Joe

 

[CajunWino]

Just joined the forum specifically because of this thread. I'm very new to wine making, only having finished a single batch. It was a Fontana pinot grigio kit, made to 5 gallons after reading Amazon reviews. The wife loved it, and we now have 4 full carboys bubbling away in the closet...2 of which are Fontana pinot grigios made to 5 gallons.

One PG is 4 days into primary, the other 4 days into secondary. Any recommendations for tweaking these batches or future batches of Fontana PG? My eyes started hurting after reading the first 20 pages of the thread, so maybe the info is in the thread and I passed over it. Thanks!

 

[joeswine]

Cheap kits

Hello and welcome to the cheap wine kit thread, Cajun Wino........were these 6 gallon kit reduced to 5? The best tweak for a pino is either Grapefruit Zest or Lemon Zest, either way the net result is a crisp bite to the finish ,the lemon will also give you a lemon background flavor. Remember a little goes a long way, in a 5 gallon batch 1/2 of a grapefruit is enough, lemon 1 lemon if its small, you can always add to the mix but you can't take it out ,got it!and take your time .Yes the thread is quite extensive ,that goes to show you how many people have tried and like the result .Always "THINK OUTSIDE THE BOX" and have fun with your wine.::

 

[CajunWino]

Hello Joe, thanks for the reply. These are both 6g kits made to 5g. How and when should I add the zest?

 

[joeswine]

Cheap kits

YOU COULD EITHER ADD THE ZEST IN THE PRIMARY OR SECONDARY,THE FUN PART IS EVEN IF YOU ADDED THEM 2 WEEKS BEFORE YOU BOTTLE THE EFFECT WILL JUST ABOUT BE THE SAME.ex,YOU FIND OUT YOU WANT MORE BITE YOU CAN ADD.

 

[CajunWino]

Heads up for anyone interested. The Fontana Cabernet Sauvignon kits just went down from $49.95 to $29.95 on Amazon. Not sure how long they'll be at this price, but I grabbed 3 for myself.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01M6919X2/?tag=skimlinks_replacement-20

*Update...they're all gone now. I'll use Joe's excellent tips to tweak one batch, leave one batch as is (except keep it to only 5g) and maybe try something different with the last batch. Hope you tweakers got ya some.

 

[joeswine]

Nice value. Lots of good things can come from one of those yet alone 3

 

[Zintrigue]

Is the Winexpert "Vintners Reserve" line worth tweaking down to 5 gallons, or keep it at 6?

 

[Mismost]

Heads up for anyone interested. The Fontana Cabernet Sauvignon kits just went down from $49.95 to $29.95 on Amazon. Not sure how long they'll be at this price, but I grabbed 3 for myself.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01M6919X2/?tag=skimlinks_replacement-20

I did one of these a while back using Joe's tweaks....tannins, oak, 5 gallon, blasted the SG outta the ballpark...way over shot it. The results are what they are....but dang sure ain't what you would call a Cab.

BUT....it is a pleasant off dry red wine that blends great with a so so Pinot Noir I made...in fact I've "bottle blended" several different wines with my "Cab" and they have very nice. I also use it to top off with.

BTW....When Joe shows a picture of two quart Mason jars of simple syrup....That does NOT mean he used BOTH in one batch! Joe uses his hydrometer.....Mismost does too, now!

 

[joeswine]

Vinter ,use as directed but you can still tweak this kit and staying within balance they make a decent kit when finished
. remember these kits are for an everyday wine at a good value.

 

[Ron0126]

Heads up for anyone interested. The Fontana Cabernet Sauvignon kits just went down from $49.95 to $29.95 on Amazon. Not sure how long they'll be at this price, but I grabbed 3 for myself.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01M6919X2/?tag=skimlinks_replacement-20

Got one plus a Chardonnay too. Only 9 of the Cabs left in stock as of 8:53am CST today.

Better hurry!

Wish they'd put the Malbec and Pinot Noir on sale like that!

 

[Spikedlemon]

Half of Cab Sauv (with Dates & Raisins) batch has been bottled over the weekend.

The color of the Cab is much more 'brown' color than anticipated but taste is nice and light.
From the first (and only) taste-glass from the racking: I don't really get any hint of date in the wine but flavor is good.

I still have very light carbonation in it (I such at degassing apparently) after 5 months but it's gone after it's been poured in the glass and sat for 10 min.

It will make a very nice easy-drinking red wine.

 

[Ambugaton]

First off thanks Joe for all the time you put into this forum!

I have the Fontana Merlot. Going to start it this afternoon. Just wanted to double check my plans:

1. Follow all instructions (bentonite, adding base)
2. Top up to 5 gal with spring water
3. Add 1 cup toasted oak to primary (Do you put them straight in from the bag?)
4. Add 1 TBS tannin to primary
5. Add 1 lbs. raisins and 1 lbs. of raspberries to primary (Should I add them fresh or make a syrup? Do I need to sterilize them if fresh?)
- Raisins mostly for body, raspberries more for fruitiness
6. Pitch yeast

I plan on fermenting a little on the warm side as I found that the flavor profile of warmer climate merlots are what I am after. Or is that just based on where the grapes are grown? Who knows

I still need to plan out what I want to experiment with in secondary.

Does this sound alright so far? Will be my first kit.

 

[joeswine]

Cheap kits

no raspberries, in the primary --raisins 1/2 half cup , oak ( French,American) 1 cup in the primary, tannins in the secondary ( black berries 16 ozs.in the primary make an fpac. that's the plan for a good balance.if your making into a 5 gallon mix do not add simple syrup check your hydrometer and check abv levels as well as ph levels if you can. Ph around 3.5 to 4.0..abv 12 to 13

 

[pgentile]

Heads up for anyone interested. The Fontana Cabernet Sauvignon kits just went down from $49.95 to $29.95 on Amazon. Not sure how long they'll be at this price, but I grabbed 3 for myself.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01M6919X2/?tag=skimlinks_replacement-20

*Update...they're all gone now. I'll use Joe's excellent tips to tweak one batch, leave one batch as is (except keep it to only 5g) and maybe try something different with the last batch. Hope you tweakers got ya some.

After seeing your post, I purchased two the other day, and it appears just under the wire by your update. I also got a blackberry concentrate from another source. Will combine the two kits with the blackberry and some frozen cab sauv skins I have to make a big batch. Did the this two years ago and turned out well. Not quite as good as an eclipse kit but at the sales price it will produce around 75 bottles of very drinkable table wine for $100 or so.