Other Tweeking Cheap Kits

[joeswine]

Would you make any changes to your Melbec?

 

[joeswine]

As for he pino grigio,add some grapefruit zest to the primary (3/4 tablespoon) it will brighten up the finish .Keep the rest as per instructions.

 

[Mismost]

Enjoyed a bottle of the tweeked Malbec, it's coming along nicely, the extra kick is nice too.

start another batch now....this goes fast!

 

[Tnuscan]

Well... lol. I made 40 gallons of the fontana malbec. It's actually my favorite of all the kit wines I have ever made. In one batch I sauteed a few plums, some blackberries and raspberries with a handful of zante currants, in the primary and then a little of the same in the secondary. In 2016 I made over 60 gallons of fontana wines, Malbec, Merlot and Pino Noir.

I am going to pull a gallon of Malbec out and add a little tannin riche extra and try adding just a little sauteed blackberry juice, and a few currants. Then let it sit a while and see what happens.

 

[Tnuscan]

@joeswine What would I change from the orginal tweek? I think I'm sensitive to the tannin. Somehow I get a headache when I mix a tablespoon in primary and another one in secondary. It may also just be the cheaper tannin I purchased in a 1 lb. bag. I do not get one when I add just one in the primary.

At first I thought the alcohol was too much, but after leaving it alone for close to a year, it is really evolving into a enjoyable drink. It will probably continue to impress me throughout the upcoming months.

I have this issue with most all kit wines, I call it a smell/taste issue. Well after tweeking these Fontana kits, either the increased alcohol or the additions of the sauteed fruits almost eliminates this. I had pretty much, got to the point of giving up on kits, until I came across your Tweeking Cheap Kits thread.

So... your either the reason I'm broke, lol, or the reason I'm tweekin like a fool.(meant jokingly) Either way the wife says I look sexy standing in front of the stove.

 

[joeswine]

add the berries or the currents not both. Keep playing with you drink it's fun. and thanks for the kind words.

 

[joeswine]

Sangiovese/merlot cheap kits

lets role this backwards and then forwards.... very soon....almost done with the primary fermentation. If you noticed there's not to much done in the area of tweaks, on this one I wanted to play close to the rules (just bents them a little) lets see what happens.

 

[Tnuscan]

Joe, when you show the pH strip did you raise or lower the pH, or is this where the kit is on it's own.?

 

[joeswine]

right at the start ,what ever I start with is what it is ,normally it's spot on to where the mfg. Wants it to be and then they give you the oak or oak dust and then it's on your taste buds. Always no the wines taste profile before you start to tweak.

 

[EastcoastWino]

Hey Everyone!

I'm new to WMT but not new to wine making, I've made 15-20 WE kits(WV,Selection,Eclipse). I've yet to tweak anything. The local wine kit store has a sale on (see link)https://www.shopnoblegrape.ca/collections/weekly-feature for WE World Vineyard, and Vintners Reserve kits. Any suggestions on which red kit I should to try to tweak? I would like to start 2 or 3.

Thanks Guys

 

[joeswine]

EastCoastWino,thanks for joining our tweaked out crew, any of them would work but first you need to decide which one you want to start with ,them we can join in, always read the wines profile that the tell. What do you like to drink???

 

[EastcoastWino]

Hi Joeswine!
I enjoy full bodied reds, I normally make the selection, and Eclipse kits so I don't have much experience with the lower end kits.

I would be interested in trying the Trinity Red, Cab w/ Skins, and Sangiovese. Of the three let me know which you think would be the best to tweak. I plan on purchasing all 3 kits because of the sale so we can tweak all 3 together!

Thanks again for the warm welcome!

 

[jlfpa]

I have a Fontana Merlot kit and was thinking of making it with the following tweeks.

Reduce to 5 gallon, Blackberry fpac, one cup oak chips and captialize to 1.10. Anything to add or leave out?

 

[Throwdown]

While I'm pretty backed up with kits right now... this one looks to be a good one for anyone looking to tweak a cab.... $45

http://labelpeelers.com/wine-making...ners-reserve-cabernet-sauvignon-10l-wine-kit/

 

[Tnuscan]

Thought I would post some numbers on some of these cheeper kits just for fun.

WE-Mezza Luna Red, no tweeks, made per instructions. pH 3.28 TA 6.3 g/L

Fontana-Malbec, tweeked @ 5 gallons, sauteed berries added to primary, and secondary with Zante Currants. pH 3.15 TA 9.9 g/L

Fontana-Merlot, tweeked @ 5 gallons, sauteed berries added to primary. pH 3.10 TA 6.9 g/L

Fontana-Pino Noir, tweeked @ 5 gallons, sauteed berries added to primary, and secondary. pH 3.07 TA 7.3 g/L

Thought it was interesting how the acids change from the additions. I have many more but they are under vacuum with Head Space Eliminators.

 

[Johnd]

Thought I would post some numbers on some of these cheeper kits just for fun.

WE-Mezza Luna Red, no tweeks, made per instructions. pH 3.28 TA 6.3 g/L

Fontana-Malbec, tweeked @ 5 gallons, sauteed berries added to primary, and secondary with Zante Currants. pH 3.15 TA 9.9 g/L

Fontana-Merlot, tweeked @ 5 gallons, sauteed berries added to primary. pH 3.10 TA 6.9 g/L

Fontana-Pino Noir, tweeked @ 5 gallons, sauteed berries added to primary, and secondary. pH 3.07 TA 7.3 g/L

Thought it was interesting how the acids change from the additions. I have many more but they are under vacuum with Head Space Eliminators.

Those are all rather low pH's and high TA's for red wines, at least for my taste, probably the result of making 6 gallon kits to 5 gallons.................

 

[joeswine]

cheap wine kits

jlfpa;the flow sounds good just check the PH before you start, always have control of the process. Stay the course.
Throwdown: how has the finial results been?
Tnuscan: nice control, can you answer Johnd?
Johnd: have you made one of these kits yet?

EastCoastWino:..on the trinity just some med oak and good ABV keep it simple.,,The Sangiovese,plums in the secondary,med.oak or dark cherries ( both as home made fpacs)for the cab w/skins1/2 cup of black currents in the primary, then follow the MFG. process, on all three adjust the ABV. to your preference.
to all of you above have fun and always 'think outside the box'

 

[joeswine]

Sangiovese/merlot cheap kits

ok,it's racking time, nice short fermentation but complete, the first racking is going into a ( 6 gallon carboy) for 1 week this allows me the space to work the wine and remove more gas if necessary, then after that ,I'll rack down to a (5 gallon carboy) and adjust the process if necessary ,then will put it to rest for at least 6mos.

 

[Tnuscan]

Those are all rather low pH's and high TA's for red wines, at least for my taste, probably the result of making 6 gallon kits to 5 gallons.................

That's what I thought, it even made me re check my pH meter. The Malbec doesn't taste that out of balance. Must be the alochol pulling it together.

Mezza Luna Red is untouched, or made to their exact instructions. (no tweeks), and to me the pH seemed to low by my thoughts. I have tested a lot of commercial wines and their pH's run in this area as do the TA. Alot of folks like and recomend these wines too.

I just pull numbers to see if they really matter and if they work together at different levels. It seems alot do. I have some favorites and they fall @ 3.6 pH and TA's between 5.6 g/l and 6.5 g/L

I think our bodies are at different pH levels and this may be the reason wines with different pH levels taste too acidic or too alkline. I just play around and test for the fun of experimenting.

I really should test three times befor posting the numbers, I just thought these were interesting. I'll recheck them against two meters to make sure these are correct.

 

[Tnuscan]

Those are all rather low pH's and high TA's for red wines, at least for my taste, probably the result of making 6 gallon kits to 5 gallons.................

Well...lol Let me first say that these were over tweeked ,not as Joe said, but as David did, per say. These were experiments that went past what Joe recommends. So you have to be careful when you tweek your way instead of Joes way.

I don't have any of the Malbec the way joe tweeks it, to test, because, well..... I drank it all. Sorry it was too good.

So because I went overboard I have some work to do.