Hi all

I'm making wine for the first time. I'm using a Cabernet wine juice/
puree (from wineexperts.com). Last week (it's been 8 days), primary
fermentation was completed and I siphoned it to a glass carboy. Now
I'm a bit confused about the following:

1) The manual of the kit says that it should stay like quiet for about
14 days, and then I can rack it, bottle it and age it for at least 6
months, but another book says that I have to rack it about 4 times
before bottling, and that whole process takes about 6 months. I'm
thinking that perhaps it is because the grape juice that I bought
didn't have any skins (to my big surprise!).
2) I would really prefer to age it in bottles than in the carboy since
I live in Houston and it's hard to keep the carboy under 65F during
the summer! (It's already expensive to keep my apartment at 80F when
the outside temperature is 90-100F!) I'm currently keeping the carboy
inside a rubbermaid receptacle full of chilled water where I
constantly add ice to keep around 60-70F. The sooner I bottle the
wine, the easier for me, since I can just put them in a wine chiller
at the correct temperature for many months. I've been told that if the
wine ages at a higher temperature it acquires a 'hot' disagreeable
flavor, so I don't want that to happen. However, I don't want to spoil
the wine by bottling prematurely.

I would really appreciate any input/suggestions that you may have.

Thanks!

Fernando

Follow the kit directions. It's in their best interest for their kits to
turn out well, therefore their instructions are well tested and work for
their kits.
Steve
"Houston Winemaker" > wrote in message
...
> Hi all
>
> I'm making wine for the first time. I'm using a Cabernet wine juice/
> puree (from wineexperts.com). Last week (it's been 8 days), primary
> fermentation was completed and I siphoned it to a glass carboy. Now
> I'm a bit confused about the following:
>
> 1) The manual of the kit says that it should stay like quiet for about
> 14 days, and then I can rack it, bottle it and age it for at least 6
> months, but another book says that I have to rack it about 4 times
> before bottling, and that whole process takes about 6 months. I'm
> thinking that perhaps it is because the grape juice that I bought
> didn't have any skins (to my big surprise!).
> 2) I would really prefer to age it in bottles than in the carboy since
> I live in Houston and it's hard to keep the carboy under 65F during
> the summer! (It's already expensive to keep my apartment at 80F when
> the outside temperature is 90-100F!) I'm currently keeping the carboy
> inside a rubbermaid receptacle full of chilled water where I
> constantly add ice to keep around 60-70F. The sooner I bottle the
> wine, the easier for me, since I can just put them in a wine chiller
> at the correct temperature for many months. I've been told that if the
> wine ages at a higher temperature it acquires a 'hot' disagreeable
> flavor, so I don't want that to happen. However, I don't want to spoil
> the wine by bottling prematurely.
>
> I would really appreciate any input/suggestions that you may have.
>
> Thanks!
>
> Fernando

Fernando:

As already stated, FOLLOW THE INSTRUCTIONS. Kits are MUCH different
than other wines.

Your description seems to be omitting the addition of the additives
(metabisulphite, sorbate, and probably chitosan). Don't leave the
meta and clearing agent out. Omitting the sorbate is probably OK, but
not recommended if this is your first kit.

There is no reason to keep the carboy at 65F. In fact, a temp that
low will encourage the wine to hold CO2. You should allow it to reach
72-75 before degassing.

Steve

On Jul 16, 9:15*am, Houston Winemaker > wrote:
> Hi all
>
> I'm making wine for the first time. I'm using a Cabernet wine juice/
> puree (from wineexperts.com). Last week (it's been 8 days), primary
> fermentation was completed and I siphoned it to a glass carboy. Now
> I'm a bit confused about the following:
>
> 1) The manual of the kit says that it should stay like quiet for about
> 14 days, and then I can rack it, bottle it and age it for at least 6
> months, but another book says that I have to rack it about 4 times
> before bottling, and that whole process takes about 6 months. I'm
> thinking that perhaps it is because the grape juice that I bought
> didn't have any skins (to my big surprise!).
> 2) I would really prefer to age it in bottles than in the carboy since
> I live in Houston and it's hard to keep the carboy under 65F during
> the summer! (It's already expensive to keep my apartment at 80F when
> the outside temperature is 90-100F!) I'm currently keeping the carboy
> inside a rubbermaid receptacle full of chilled water where I
> constantly add ice to keep around 60-70F. The sooner I bottle the
> wine, the easier for me, since I can just put them in a wine chiller
> at the correct temperature for many months. I've been told that if the
> wine ages at a higher temperature it acquires a 'hot' disagreeable
> flavor, so I don't want that to happen. However, I don't want to spoil
> the wine by bottling prematurely.
>
> I would really appreciate any input/suggestions that you may have.
>
> Thanks!
>
> Fernando

I have made a number of the WineExpert kits. Follow the directions
and you should be fine. I put my carboy in the basement, where it is
~60-65 deg during summer; not sure if this is option for you. By the
way, the kit makes a decent product, and it does taste better with age
so try to leave it for 6 months minimum before drinking.
As this is you first batch, you might watch the WineExpert videos on
YouTube as they walk you through the process from newbie perspective.
Good Luck!