Rob,

Were the #s you quoted your own measurements, or provided by the
retailer? If it was the latter, I wouldn't trust them because I've
heard just too many complaints from people doing their own
measurements on this type of product and finding them to be very
different (and their own measurements backing up the less-than-ideal
end results they get). From what I've heard, this type of product is
generally riskier and less consistent than kits from the bigger
producers like Brew King -- they do a good job of adjusting
acid/pH/sugar in producing the kits, although there are downsides to
those products too... I wouldn't consider doing the kind of product
you chose without being prepared (and equipped) to treat it like raw
must -- doing all the measurements/adjustments/blending that the raw
material will need.

One thing you may consider now is to buy a less expensive kit like one
of Brew King's Vintners Reserve series, diluting it to only 4 US
gallons or so instead of the full six, and then blending that with
your Merlot to get about 10 gallons total. You may want to blend at
least partially before fermenting again, since trying to ferment
something that concentrated may be too hard on the yeast and it may
not ferment all the sugars before becoming too alcoholic for the yeast
-- in any case be sure to use EC-1118 or Premier Cuvee yeast (most
likely this will come with the kit) because these have better alcohol
tolerance. It still won't be a stunning wine and still probably a bit
weak, but should be better. It's a bit of a gamble, but probably
worth it if you can't see yourself ever drinking the existing wine.

If it was me, I would probably try diluting the kit to 4 gallons, add
2 gallons of the weak Merlot, ferment dry and rack and bulk age until
good and clear, and then experiment with samples to see what the
optimial blend is between that batch and the remaining weak Merlot.
Lots of work, but lots of fun and learning too :-) You might even
want to try adding some bananas or raisins for added body...

If you're not too attached to true Merlot grape varietal flavours and
would be satisfied with just getting something tasty, then one thing
you might consider (along the lines of the elderberry suggestion) is
steeping some fruity herbal tea in the wine for a short time. This
year many of my reds from cheap central california fruit were somewhat
weak, and my wife happened to be drinking some Black Currant Bracer
(London Tea Co) one day which was incredibly fragrant and flavourful.
I really like black currant, so I decided to hang one of these teabags
in some of my Ruby Cabernet for a few hours (on it's own the wine was
quite weak in flavour but quite alcoholic and darkly colored). I'm
really happy with the results, although it definitely won't pass for a
central valley Ruby Cab anymore. If you try this, just be careful
because it's amazing how much flavour and aroma one little teabag has
-- or perhaps how little my wine had beforehand :-)

In any case, I wouldn't flush it unless it had some really horrible
defect. My first wine from grapes was a Pinot Noir from cheap cheap
Oregon grapes that turned out very very light and weakly flavoured. I
bottled it anyhow, and even shipped most of it back to Canada with me
when we moved. I'm glad I did, because 2 years of bottle aging later
the fruitiness, though still week, is much more prominent and it is
still very enjoyable when I'm in the right mood. It even has some
nice terroir to it. I just wish I had the vineyards we picked them
from -- I'm sure the owner could get some pretty good wine if he
thinned the crop properly (it looked like he was going for quantity
rather than quality).

Good Luck!

Richard

(Rob) wrote in message . com>...
> Don't worry, Darlene, I'm not rushing into anything, which is why I'm
> asking for the advice. While I'm asking more for general information
> and ancedotes from those who've made this decision in the past, for
> those who want to help me in this specific case, the info's below.
>
> I'm using juice sold in 6 gallon containers under the name "Home Wine,
> inc." They're the same folks who make the Alexander Sun Country
> concentrates, but they sell juice under that name at their home base a
> relatively short distance from where I live. While there was no date
> on the bucket, I did it with the expectation that the juice was very
> fresh (2003), as it was right at the end of the harvest here. Started
> fermentation on 10 Oct 03, racked on 15 Oct and 14 Nov. Started with
> 24 Brix, .70TA (3.5 pH), and last reading on SG was .99. I used
> "Bordeaux Red" yeast, and had no obvious problems with fermentation -
> in fact it was the best fermenting wine of the three I'm doing this
> year (6 gallons of Sauv Blanc (I got this from the same company and at
> the same time as the Merlot; it shows no similar sign of weakness) and
> 6 gallons of Zinfandel (purchased the grapes straight from a vinyard
> on that).
>
> BTW, last year I did a Mosto Italiano Riesling juice kit (they sell
> sterile juice, and included in the package is yeast, clarifiers, etc.)
> that about 2 months after fermentation I was questioning, but given
> some time it came around and is now really nice - wish I had more now!
> That seemed very different to me, though, as in the riesling's case
> it started with a lot of flavor which wasn't particularly "yummy".
> The Merlot that I'm asking about here seems more like colored, lightly
> flavored water.
>
> Thanks, everyone.
> Rob
>
>
>
> "Dar V" > wrote in message >...
> > Rob,
> > I hope you'll sit tight and give everyone a chance to respond considering it
> > is the holidays. It is a tough decision to toss a batch. I've done it, but
> > it was only 1 gallon of a 2 gallon batch, I had waited almost 7 months, and
> > I had had problems with the batch from the beginning. It might help if you
> > tell us what the brand name of the wine kit is, what your starting and
> > ending SG was, when you started it or how old the wine is, and how many
> > times you racked it. I do not do wine kits. But I do know that wines
> > change a lot from the first month to 6 months to 1 year and beyond. There
> > also may be some fixes, others might suggest - hang in there.
> > Darlene
> >
> > "Rob" > wrote in message
> > om...
> > > I've currently got 6 gallons of a Merlot juice kit "bulk" aging in my
> > > garage. When I first got the juice, and even moreso at it's last
> > > racking, it seems very weak, almost like it was greatly watered down.
> > > Very uninteresting. With about an ounce of lightly toasted oak, my
> > > wife has described it a "coffee flavored water".
> > >
> > > I'm tempted to give up on the wine and start something else, but
> > > before I do, I figured I'd ask here about anyone else's experience in
> > > giving up on a wine, and what does anyone else use as a criteria to
> > > make this decision.
> > >
> > > Thanks
> > >
> > > Rob Woodard