WineXpert What is your longest aged kit wine in your cellar?

[Boatboy24]

I still have one bottle from my 3rd kit - started 5/13/2012. I'm afraid to drink it. LOL!

It was a Vino Italiano (aka: Amazon, El Cheapo) Cabernet Sauvignon. $40, LOL! Just went back through my notes and saw that I added 12oz of raisins, 6.5oz of dried blueberries and a sliced banana into the primary. Maybe I'll go home and crack that bad boy open tonight. If I'm never heard from again, you know why.

 

[crushday]

I still have one bottle from my 3rd kit - started 5/13/2012. I'm afraid to drink it. LOL!

It was a Vino Italiano (aka: Amazon, El Cheapo) Cabernet Sauvignon. $40, LOL! Just went back through my notes and saw that I added 12oz of raisins, 6.5oz of dried blueberries and a sliced banana into the primary. Maybe I'll go home and crack that bad boy open tonight. If I'm never heard from again, you know why.

If we don't see any WMT activity from you by tomorrow we'll send in a wellness check...lol

 

[jsbeckton]

2014 WE Lodi Cab Sauv. This wine has never really been that exciting to me, even at year 4.

Mine is almost 3 years and am not impressed. Guess it’s not going to turn any corners!

 

[dmguptill]

Mine is almost 3 years and am not impressed. Guess it’s not going to turn any corners!

I keep seeing people say this about the eclipse Lodi cab...Too bad that even after several years it's still kinda meh

Edit: now that I go back and reread the OP, maybe it just needs a few more years

 

[memnosine]

Oldest here in the Berry Basements is a Malmsey Maderia, a "Project Wine Cellar" kit from when Wine Art was still around, fhere is one of three remaining bottles. From 1975.

 

[crushday]

Oldest here in the Berry Basements is a Malmsey Maderia, a "Project Wine Cellar" kit from when Wine Art was still around, fhere is one of three remaining bottles. From 1975.

Are you planning opening one of those three?

 

[Vinobeau]

My second, and last, kit was a Gamay Beaujolais from 1975 - bottled on 1/2/1976. It was a 5 gallon kit and it was the first wine to be aged in my brand new oak barrel. Well, it turned out too oaky and tart; but I couldn't throw it out! I thought that it might mellow out with bottle ageing, but alas - no. I've used some bottles thru the years - cooking, salad dressings, mixing with other wines,etc. I still have 2 bottles!!
My first kit, and my first attempt at winemaking, was a 2 1/2 gallon Sears Vino kit that my fiancee gave for Christmas in 1972. I've saved the box and the $12.00 price tag is still on it.

 

[David219]

Funny how this thread somehow resurrected. I haven’t been around much. It was striking to see my name on the thread list!

My winemaking has slowed to just a couple kits a year. I have a WE Stag’s Leap Merlot in my neutral Vadai barrel and two kits on deck (WE Selection Amarone and Passport Two Roads Red). Both of which I’ve had sitting around for enough time I’ll need to get fresh yeast.

I still have one bottle of that 2011 Lodi Cab and the Shiraz/Viognier and Primitivo I had in my cellar when I first posted this. I have 5 bottles of WE Barolo and CC Red Mountain Cab from 2014 that I’m intrigued to try but don’t want to lose. You can’t have your cake and eat it, too, it seems...

Hope you all are well and enjoy a prosperous, happy 2019. May the wines you make this year all age well.

 

[crushday]

My second, and last, kit was a Gamay Beaujolais from 1975 - bottled on 1/2/1976. It was a 5 gallon kit and it was the first wine to be aged in my brand new oak barrel. Well, it turned out too oaky and tart; but I couldn't throw it out! I thought that it might mellow out with bottle ageing, but alas - no. I've used some bottles thru the years - cooking, salad dressings, mixing with other wines,etc. I still have 2 bottles!!
My first kit, and my first attempt at winemaking, was a 2 1/2 gallon Sears Vino kit that my fiancee gave for Christmas in 1972. I've saved the box and the $12.00 price tag is still on it.

Hey, just for curiosity sake, how long did you age in your new barrel? I understand it was 40+ years ago but if you can remember or have notes...

 

[David219]

It was a process. I had to watch it closely the first few batches...a new barrel will impart a ton of oak very quickly. Within weeks.

My first kit was only in the barrel for 3 weeks, and was way too “oaky” for my taste. The second kit was able to barrel for 6 weeks, the third for 8 weeks. I based these times by estimates from other winemakers on breaking in a barrel and by taste.

The fourth and fifth kits stayed in 3 months. The sixth kit four.

My barrel has seen 17 kits. Most I kept in for around four months. That seemed to be a safe sweet spot from what people on this forum related and other things I read.

The last two kits remained in longer. Not necessarily by design. I just have slowed down. The longest time was 9 months for the last batch.

I topped things up regularly and use a Vinmetrica to test SO2 levels.

I can’t say I remember at what point the barrel seemed to be neutral, but it I seem to recall it being shortly after a kit or two had been through the 4 month cycle. So maybe 18 months and 6 or seven kits?

And it wasn’t 40+ years ago, although it sometimes feels that way.

 

[crushday]

And it wasn’t 40+ years ago, although it sometimes feels that way.

Thanks for all the info. I thought you mentioned the kit that barrel aged too long was from 1976... I'm very interested in new barrel aging timelines. I have recently made the investment in several barrels, 5 of which are 6.1 gallons. I have my first wine in them and it's been three months now. I tasted the wine today and it's all very good and not oaky to me at all. I was planning on going six months in this size barrel per batch. As they drift into neutrality, I'll insert oak spirals...

 

[Chris Pittock]

My current stash is all under a year old, the oldest being about 3 months. I did once find a bottle of CWE Black Cherry at the back of my cellar that I made in 1996, which at that time was 13 years old. I was apprehensive of drinking it, but when I did it had a wonderful rich syrupy texture with a strong cherry flavour. It was very much like a good Tawny Port. I have tried to replicate this since, but as yet I haven't managed such a good flavour.

 

[Xlev]

Old thread but still relevant. I have been told by a guy selling the winexpert kits that after 2 years of aging they will go downhill.Maybe not quite true. I have made just limited edition or private reserve kits,some of them with skins and I am hoping that they can last over 2 years because I have made much more wine than I can drink in the next 2 years

 

[Brian55]

Old thread but still relevant. I have been told by a guy selling the winexpert kits that after 2 years of aging they will go downhill.Maybe not quite true. I have made just limited edition or private reserve kits,some of them with skins and I am hoping that they can last over 2 years because I have made much more wine than I can drink in the next 2 years

Two years is when premium kit reds finally start getting good. Some start to fade a bit around four or five years, but some of the best bottles I've enjoyed have been closer to five.

 

[winemaker81]

@Xlev, the TL/DR answer to your question is the vendor is wrong. Not all kits decline after 2 years.

The long answer is that there is no single answer. It depends on the quality of the vendor, the quality of the kit, and the grape type.

The quality of the vendor is a criteria. I'm familiar with Winexpert (WE) and R J Spagnols (RJS), and they are pretty much top of the heap. Right now I'm drinking an 18 month old Finer Wine Kits (FWK) Chardonnay, and it's aging very nicely. There are other good quality vendors, but I don't have experience with them and cannot offer advice. OTOH, if you buy a cheap kit, well, you're buying a cheap kit.

Grade within the vendor matters. The lowest end kits from WE and RJS make good wine, but I wouldn't plan for long aging. The mid-range kits (e.g., WE Reserve) appear to be the best value. I've tried premium kits and IME the results did not match the price.

White wine kits have less shelf life, which is also true of fresh grapes. Although I've had whites last 4 years, I've also had them start decline at 15 months. The FWK Chardonnay I'm drinking now is very nice, but a WE Reserve Chardonnay was in serious decline at the same age (18 months). I'll use up the FWK in 6 months or so, as I'm not counting on a much longer shelf life. This doesn't mean it won't last longer; just that recent experience with whites gives me reason to drink it up and make more.

Reds generally have a longer shelf life than whites. Kits that include skin packs, aging oak, and/or have an ABV above 13% generally have a longer shelf life, keeping in mind vendor quality and kit quality. I agree with @Brian55 that red kits may need 2 years for best results.

 

[Rice_Guy]

@Xlev I would add to Bryan’s post that one can build shelf life by adding tannins to any wine. Most red vinifera grape (not kit) has tannin which will taste harsh as made. (but you can shorten steep/ extraction to create a young drinking wine) As tannins age the preferentially oxidize and become flavorless/ ie the wine improves.

If you are trying to build age into a wine having high acid is useful. One trick in the vinters club is to pick out some of the batch for long age and add extra acid at bottling. My observation looking back/ retesting fruit wines over five years, the grams of acid per liter decreases by about0.1% per year. MLF decreases the grams of acid and correlates with shorter shelf life.

Back to your question about kits. The vinters club does kits as demonstrations and the club collects wine. In general white kits are showing oxidation or bad enough to dump in two years. Red wine kits are still drinkable at five years. All kits have less fresh/ less fruity taste with age. , , , , , In Hungary last year we had high acid riesling from fresh grape that was still OK at ten years age. High Acid is a preservative.

 

[pproctorga]

I've made several WE Eclipse series kits and none have been impressive thus far. My oldest is the Lodi Ranch Cab Sav that is now 4.5 years old. It is just now starting to turn towards what may be outstanding... if it continues. I'm going to give it another year before opening the next bottle.

 

[Xlev]

Some great information from all of you,thank you for sharing all your knowledge!

 

[joeswine]

2) coffee port 12 years old and a Spanish malbec from 2011, next 2 contest entrées

 

[plato25]

I still have one bottle from my 3rd kit - started 5/13/2012. I'm afraid to drink it. LOL!

It was a Vino Italiano (aka: Amazon, El Cheapo) Cabernet Sauvignon. $40, LOL! Just went back through my notes and saw that I added 12oz of raisins, 6.5oz of dried blueberries and a sliced banana into the primary. Maybe I'll go home and crack that bad boy open tonight. If I'm never heard from again, you know why.

Or a kit but I drank some dried bilberry wine after 10/12 years. Perfect. One of the best wines I have ever drunk, incl commercial wines