Suggestions for first attempt at wine
 

Hello,

I have been making beer for over 10yrs and mead for about two. My father has
been harassing me to make a batch of Merlot. I think I'm about to finally
break down and get a Brew King Select kit and get it started. I plan to make
it per the instructions for the first time and rack onto marbles to yield a
low headspace after racking.

Is it to late to start a kit and still be in bottles by xmas? I don't mind
telling him to let it age 3-6 months in the bottle. I basically have no idea
how long wine takes but I make meads and Lambics that I make and forget
about for 12-18months so I know the drill and can wait if needed.

Is the yeast provided adequate or should I use a liquid strain?

Thanks for any input,

Mark

Suggestions for first attempt at wine
 

The brew king kits typically are a 4-6 week turn around, according to
instructions.

"Mark Garwatoski" > wrote in message
. com...
> Hello,
>
> I have been making beer for over 10yrs and mead for about two. My father
has
> been harassing me to make a batch of Merlot. I think I'm about to finally
> break down and get a Brew King Select kit and get it started. I plan to
make
> it per the instructions for the first time and rack onto marbles to yield
a
> low headspace after racking.
>
> Is it to late to start a kit and still be in bottles by xmas? I don't mind
> telling him to let it age 3-6 months in the bottle. I basically have no
idea
> how long wine takes but I make meads and Lambics that I make and forget
> about for 12-18months so I know the drill and can wait if needed.
>
> Is the yeast provided adequate or should I use a liquid strain?
>
> Thanks for any input,
>
> Mark
>
>

Suggestions for first attempt at wine
 

"Adam Lang" > wrote in message
...
> The brew king kits typically are a 4-6 week turn around, according to
> instructions.
>
> "Mark Garwatoski" > wrote in message
> . com...
> > Hello,
> >
> > I have been making beer for over 10yrs and mead for about two. My father
> has
> > been harassing me to make a batch of Merlot. I think I'm about to
finally
> > break down and get a Brew King Select kit and get it started. I plan to
> make
> > it per the instructions for the first time and rack onto marbles to
yield
> a
> > low headspace after racking.
> >
> > Is it to late to start a kit and still be in bottles by xmas? I don't
mind
> > telling him to let it age 3-6 months in the bottle. I basically have no
> idea
> > how long wine takes but I make meads and Lambics that I make and forget
> > about for 12-18months so I know the drill and can wait if needed.
> >
> > Is the yeast provided adequate or should I use a liquid strain?
> >
> > Thanks for any input,
> >
> > Mark
> >


IMHO, Christmas should be fine. If you start in June, bottle in September
you will have 90 days in the bottle. Longer is better but 90 days will
suffice (I've made about 20 brew king kits).

The supplied yeast is fine too IMO. You might consider adding some oak to
your primary if you like an oaky flavor and/or add some tannin. Also, there
is a range of SG to which you dilute with water. Dilute to the high end
(less water) for a better result (in fact, I have reduced the water to 5.75
US gallons total volume with good results).

Good Luck,
--
KB

Suggestions for first attempt at wine
 

That seems like a short amount of time. I'm used to letting Mead sit in
secondary for 6-12months to clear and then bottle.
Do the select kits come with oak cubes? Why would you add them to the
primary instead of the secondary, shorter contact time?

Thanks,
Mark


>
> IMHO, Christmas should be fine. If you start in June, bottle in September
> you will have 90 days in the bottle. Longer is better but 90 days will
> suffice (I've made about 20 brew king kits).
>
> The supplied yeast is fine too IMO. You might consider adding some oak to
> your primary if you like an oaky flavor and/or add some tannin. Also,
there
> is a range of SG to which you dilute with water. Dilute to the high end
> (less water) for a better result (in fact, I have reduced the water to
5.75
> US gallons total volume with good results).
>
> Good Luck,
> --
> KB
>
>

Suggestions for first attempt at wine
 

On 6/21/04 5:14 AM, in article
, "Mark Garwatoski"
> wrote:

> That seems like a short amount of time. I'm used to letting Mead sit in
> secondary for 6-12months to clear and then bottle.
> Do the select kits come with oak cubes? Why would you add them to the
> primary instead of the secondary, shorter contact time?
>
> Thanks,
> Mark

A number of people have pointed out in this newsgroup, and I have confirmed
with my own tests, that adding oak to the primary results in a much better
integrated oak flavor in the final product. I have found adding oak after
fermentation results in a wine that . . Well . . Tastes like it has had oak
added. If added in the beginning, the oak harmonizes much more with the wine
and tastes like it is part of the wine, for lack of a better description. I
have wondered about this issue as I see lots of commercial wines being
fermented in steel and then aged in oak barrels. I have com to the
conclusion that oaking with chips or cubes is much different than aging in
barrels.

--
Greg Cook
http://homepage.mac.com/gregcook/Wine
http://homepage.mac.com/gregcook/aws

(remove spamblocker from my email)

Suggestions for first attempt at wine
 

"Mark Garwatoski" > wrote in message

> I think I'm about to finally
> break down and get a Brew King Select kit and get it started.
>
> Is it to late to start a kit and still be in bottles by xmas? I don't mind
> telling him to let it age 3-6 months in the bottle. I basically have no
idea
> how long wine takes but I make meads and Lambics that I make and forget
> about for 12-18months so I know the drill and can wait if needed.

Six month is OK, but 18 is better. Drink a bottle at Christmas, but save
the rest for consumption at intervals of a couple of months. You'll see the
improvement over time.


>
> Is the yeast provided adequate or should I use a liquid strain?

It is fine.
Ed

http://pages.cthome.net/edhome

Suggestions for first attempt at wine
 

Mead often takes longer to age out than wine. That is with fresh fruit
compared to mead. But kits are really designed to age very quickly. I do
not know exactly what they do to them but they can be ready to drink far
sooner than wine made with the same fresh fruit. If you start it now it
will probably be fine by Christmas but might be better later.

That said, I am not impressed by any of the red wine kits I have made.
White wine kits, yes, but not the red wine kits. But that is just my
opinion as others really like them. For red wine, I like to go from fresh
fruit but then you are looking at 2 years or more.

Ray

"Mark Garwatoski" > wrote in message
. com...
> That seems like a short amount of time. I'm used to letting Mead sit in
> secondary for 6-12months to clear and then bottle.
> Do the select kits come with oak cubes? Why would you add them to the
> primary instead of the secondary, shorter contact time?
>
> Thanks,
> Mark
>
>
> >
> > IMHO, Christmas should be fine. If you start in June, bottle in
September
> > you will have 90 days in the bottle. Longer is better but 90 days will
> > suffice (I've made about 20 brew king kits).
> >
> > The supplied yeast is fine too IMO. You might consider adding some oak
to
> > your primary if you like an oaky flavor and/or add some tannin. Also,
> there
> > is a range of SG to which you dilute with water. Dilute to the high end
> > (less water) for a better result (in fact, I have reduced the water to
> 5.75
> > US gallons total volume with good results).
> >
> > Good Luck,
> > --
> > KB
> >
> >
>
>

Suggestions for first attempt at wine
 

"Mark Garwatoski" > wrote in message .com>...
> That seems like a short amount of time. I'm used to letting Mead sit in
> secondary for 6-12months to clear and then bottle.
> Do the select kits come with oak cubes? Why would you add them to the
> primary instead of the secondary, shorter contact time?

Bear in mind that kits are designed to produce reasonably drinkable
results in a short period of time. The better ones (like the Brew
King Selection series) will definitely benefit from some months of
aging (carboy and bottle) but should be pretty drinkable within 3 or 4
months. Meads and other non-grape fruit wines seem to take a good
deal longer to clear and reach drinkability. I don't know why, that's
just the way they are, at least in my experience.

Yes, most of the better red kits come with some sort of oak (usually
sawdust, for the kits I've made). There may be some slight difference
in adding oak during the primary fermentation, rather than later; my
guess is that with the sawdust they usually include, you're going to
get full extraction from the oak pretty fast. Using it in primary
(and discarding when you rack into a carboy) makes life a little
simpler. I don't think it would harm anything if you wanted to add it
later, or keep it when you rack to the carboy . But if your intention
is to follow the directions for your first kit, I'd just follow the
directions for the oak.

About the only area where I'd deviate from the directions is in timing
- as long as your carboy is topped up and under airlock, there is no
real urgency to doing things according to the timetable in the
instructions; I'd probably take 3 months or more before bottling,
rather than the 6 weeks the instructions cover.

Enjoy --


Doug

Suggestions for first attempt at wine
 

Thanks for the info. How important is it to top off when racking? I don't
have any wine to top off with and it seems your just diluting it if you add
water which can't be good. I have 6gal carboys I plan to use and purge with
CO2 prior to any racking and I can also purge after racking and adding the
airlock. I also thought about using marble to bring the volume up to the top
of the carboy.

Mark

"K. B." > wrote in message
. ..
>
> "Adam Lang" > wrote in message
> ...
> > The brew king kits typically are a 4-6 week turn around, according to
> > instructions.
> >
> > "Mark Garwatoski" > wrote in message
> > . com...
> > > Hello,
> > >
> > > I have been making beer for over 10yrs and mead for about two. My
father
> > has
> > > been harassing me to make a batch of Merlot. I think I'm about to
> finally
> > > break down and get a Brew King Select kit and get it started. I plan
to
> > make
> > > it per the instructions for the first time and rack onto marbles to
> yield
> > a
> > > low headspace after racking.
> > >
> > > Is it to late to start a kit and still be in bottles by xmas? I don't
> mind
> > > telling him to let it age 3-6 months in the bottle. I basically have
no
> > idea
> > > how long wine takes but I make meads and Lambics that I make and
forget
> > > about for 12-18months so I know the drill and can wait if needed.
> > >
> > > Is the yeast provided adequate or should I use a liquid strain?
> > >
> > > Thanks for any input,
> > >
> > > Mark
> > >
>
>
> IMHO, Christmas should be fine. If you start in June, bottle in September
> you will have 90 days in the bottle. Longer is better but 90 days will
> suffice (I've made about 20 brew king kits).
>
> The supplied yeast is fine too IMO. You might consider adding some oak to
> your primary if you like an oaky flavor and/or add some tannin. Also,
there
> is a range of SG to which you dilute with water. Dilute to the high end
> (less water) for a better result (in fact, I have reduced the water to
5.75
> US gallons total volume with good results).
>
> Good Luck,
> --
> KB
>
>

Suggestions for first attempt at wine
 

"Mark Garwatoski" > wrote in message
. com...
> Thanks for the info. How important is it to top off when racking? I don't
> have any wine to top off with and it seems your just diluting it if you
add
> water which can't be good. I have 6gal carboys I plan to use and purge
with
> CO2 prior to any racking and I can also purge after racking and adding the
> airlock. I also thought about using marble to bring the volume up to the
top
> of the carboy.

You can buy an inexpensive wine similar to what you are making. You can put
glass marbles in to take up the space. A little water won't be noticed, but
too much will be.
Ed

Suggestions for first attempt at wine
 

Mark,

I haven't made kit wine for many, many years so I am no expert.
However, generally the lighter whites age more quickly than the reds and
although either would be drinkable by Christmas you may want to consider
a white such as a Riesling or even a Chardonnay and IMHO it would be a
better wine by Christmas than the Merlot. This assumes that your father
likes white wines as well as reds.

Good luck,

Glen Duff
-----------------

Mark Garwatoski wrote:

> Hello,
>
> I have been making beer for over 10yrs and mead for about two. My father has
> been harassing me to make a batch of Merlot. I think I'm about to finally
> break down and get a Brew King Select kit and get it started. I plan to make
> it per the instructions for the first time and rack onto marbles to yield a
> low headspace after racking.
>
> Is it to late to start a kit and still be in bottles by xmas? I don't mind
> telling him to let it age 3-6 months in the bottle. I basically have no idea
> how long wine takes but I make meads and Lambics that I make and forget
> about for 12-18months so I know the drill and can wait if needed.
>
> Is the yeast provided adequate or should I use a liquid strain?
>
> Thanks for any input,
>
> Mark
>
>
>

Suggestions for first attempt at wine
 

It is very important to top off. If you do not want to dilute with water or
with a different wine (I don't like to) you can get around this by getting
some smaller jugs and extra airlocks to rack into. It is good to have a few
3 gal jugs and/or some 1 gal jugs. 1/2 gal jugs will really round out your
collection.

Ray

"Mark Garwatoski" > wrote in message
. com...
> Thanks for the info. How important is it to top off when racking? I don't
> have any wine to top off with and it seems your just diluting it if you
add
> water which can't be good. I have 6gal carboys I plan to use and purge
with
> CO2 prior to any racking and I can also purge after racking and adding the
> airlock. I also thought about using marble to bring the volume up to the
top
> of the carboy.
>
> Mark
>
> "K. B." > wrote in message
> . ..
> >
> > "Adam Lang" > wrote in message
> > ...
> > > The brew king kits typically are a 4-6 week turn around, according to
> > > instructions.
> > >
> > > "Mark Garwatoski" > wrote in message
> > > . com...
> > > > Hello,
> > > >
> > > > I have been making beer for over 10yrs and mead for about two. My
> father
> > > has
> > > > been harassing me to make a batch of Merlot. I think I'm about to
> > finally
> > > > break down and get a Brew King Select kit and get it started. I plan
> to
> > > make
> > > > it per the instructions for the first time and rack onto marbles to
> > yield
> > > a
> > > > low headspace after racking.
> > > >
> > > > Is it to late to start a kit and still be in bottles by xmas? I
don't
> > mind
> > > > telling him to let it age 3-6 months in the bottle. I basically have
> no
> > > idea
> > > > how long wine takes but I make meads and Lambics that I make and
> forget
> > > > about for 12-18months so I know the drill and can wait if needed.
> > > >
> > > > Is the yeast provided adequate or should I use a liquid strain?
> > > >
> > > > Thanks for any input,
> > > >
> > > > Mark
> > > >
> >
> >
> > IMHO, Christmas should be fine. If you start in June, bottle in
September
> > you will have 90 days in the bottle. Longer is better but 90 days will
> > suffice (I've made about 20 brew king kits).
> >
> > The supplied yeast is fine too IMO. You might consider adding some oak
to
> > your primary if you like an oaky flavor and/or add some tannin. Also,
> there
> > is a range of SG to which you dilute with water. Dilute to the high end
> > (less water) for a better result (in fact, I have reduced the water to
> 5.75
> > US gallons total volume with good results).
> >
> > Good Luck,
> > --
> > KB
> >
> >
>
>

Suggestions for first attempt at wine
 

In article > ,
Mark Garwatoski > wrote:
>Thanks for the info. How important is it to top off when racking? I don't
>have any wine to top off with and it seems your just diluting it if you add
>water which can't be good. I have 6gal carboys I plan to use and purge with
>CO2 prior to any racking and I can also purge after racking and adding the
>airlock. I also thought about using marble to bring the volume up to the top
>of the carboy.

Grab a 5 gallon carboy for aging, and fill it to the neck. Bottle the
other 2-4 bottles for early consumption.

I picked up the ~$90 Mosti Mondiale (?) Cab Sauv from grape&granary.
It's all juice rather than concentrate. The early bottle we had was
wonderful. I also have the upper-end Merlot from BK waiting for its
turn in the fermenters (oddly, it's seems that it's still slightly
concentrated; I thought it would be pure juice). It came with three
packs of oak.

Also, you can just order more oak when you buy the kit.

hawk
--
Richard E. Hawkins, Asst. Prof. of Economics /"\ ASCII ribbon campaign
111 Hiller (814) 375-4846 \ / against HTML mail
These opinions will not be those of X and postings.
Penn State until it pays my retainer. / \