Homewinery Big Bold dry red choice?

Hi all

I need to get some red concentrate to help boost flavor in a red wine in primary ferment. I would prefer a big flavor that should be made dry. I've not been able to find any info about the Italian Red concentrate, and am hoping for some feedback from someone who has tried it. Or possibly a diff red available there? I'm trying to fix a major goof and make something drinkable out of 2 red Italian buckets that got thinned down by water. Long story short starting SG was 1.030 and I didn't realize that meant it had already been fermenting a while when I got it. So now I need to add flavor but as little added sugar as possible. From my research that means the regular Red Grape Concentrate available at LHBS is out. Homewinery instructions have you add sugar, so I'm hoping that will work. I had a wonderful Chateau Neuf de Pape and a Barolo until I added sugar and thus poisoned the yeast.

Any experience with full flavored dry reds from Homewinery gratefully appreciated. And hopefully my newbie bucket mistake will stop someone else from doing the same thing.

Pam in cinti

Not clear why your wine became diluted.

Try this with a little of the wine:

Fill a freezer safe ziplock bag 1/2 way with the wine (water in the bag will expand as it freezes). Put it in a plastic or metal bowl (in case the bag leaks), and then put it in the freezer. You just want to freeze the water, and not the alcohol. In a few hours, remove the frozen ice (or frozen part of the slush), save the ice, and warm up the wine.

Sample the wine and see if that accomplishes anything. Worst case, put the frozen ice back into the wine. Hopefully the ice is mainly water with a minimal amount of what makes it wine.

I added the water on purpose once I realized I had killed all hope of fermenting out any more sugar, and the wine was not drinkable as it was. I really needed to get the ferment going again as I had been trying for 2 weeks with no results. One bucket was 1.050, the other 1.040. At least with the water, fermentation began again so I have time to plan my next move.

Freezing it is a really novel idea. I will definitely give that a shot. At this point I have about 16 gallons between the 2 original buckets since I added fruit etc.

In case the freezing doesn't work does anyone know if the Italian Red from Home winery is a sweet wine? Would anyone suggest a diff red to add to these juice buckets? I realize these are going to be more like table wine wine now, but that is better than too sweet to drink at all.

Pam in cinti

Just FYI, concentrating by freezing is not legal in the US, and not discussed here....

Apologies. Not my intent at all. Will contact Homewinery in the am to see which red concentrate they would recommend to add flavor to my currently very watery attempt at red wine.

Pam in cinti

What "2 red Italian buckets" did you start with? Was it fresh grapes, frozen must, kit, etc?
What have you added (fruit, sugar, etc), how much, and when?
How much extra water did you add? When?

cintipam said:

Apologies. Not my intent at all. Will contact Homewinery in the am to see which red concentrate they would recommend to add flavor to my currently very watery attempt at red wine.

Pam in cinti

Click to expand...

They are a lots of help. I think that it will work out fine. Do you know what your acid is? maybe some finnishing tannin.