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smurfe

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I needed a six gallon carboy today so I decided to bottle my Wine Expert Estate SeriesWoodbridge Ranch II Cabernet Sauvignon. It has been bulk aging right at one year I believe. I had brought this kit home from Winestock 1 and made it right after.


I am blown away by the quality of this wine. There is absolutely no way you can tell this is a kit wine. It has a fantastic nose that is definitely those of a Cabwith strong fruit forward signs of the black currant and ripe cherries. A hint of vanilla is noted as well. The taste is unbelievable with a jammy, full mouthful taste experience that goes down so smooth. It is like a taste explosion on the taste buds.


I highly recommend this wine kit. All of the Estate Series kits I have done to date have been very good but I have to say this one exceeds all I have done to date. I can't stress enough to buy the best kits you can afford and then practice patience. It will pay off in the end. While this wine is ready to enjoy now, it has been stored away now for probably another year to reach it's full maturity.
 
That really does sound great Smurfe. I opened a bottle of the 18 month old Crushendo Castellina Supertuscan Di Siena yesterday to top up the Mosti Frozen Must Amarone. I had to try some of it to make sure it wasn't bad and WOW. Just the last couple months have made a world of difference. The complexity and mouthfeel is astounding. I will have to try one of the Cab Sauv kits also. It is so hard staying out of it, but boy is it worth it in the end.
 
It's amazing what some time can do for a wine.
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I know what you mean Appleman as Masta gave me a magnum of the Super Tuscan and must say that it was the best kit wine Ive ever had the pleasure of tasting. I split the magnum up and a few others that Masta gave me me and am having my Brother and Sister -In-Law over next weekend for a wine tasting as he had made a Alexander's Chianti and it was horrible and then he made another Alexander's red wine and again it is horrible. I am having im over to see what a good kit wine will taste like so he doesnt give up. For Christmas I bought him a Mosti All Juice Pinot Noir.
 
Wade I am sure he will like the Mosti All Juice Pinot Noir. Funny you should mention it. I actually bottled mine today to free up a six gallon carboy so I could rack my reds off the oak. It is a very good Pinot Noir wine- one anybody would enjoy drinking. I ended up over oaking it just a bit. It has been bulk aging for six months and when I bottled it and got to the bottom I said"Oh my God I forgot to rack it off the oak after a month". That's what will happen when you get busy with things in the summer time. Despite the oak, it still is great and after it ages six months, I believe the oak will add to the typical earthy taste of the Pinot.






So what are you getting me for Christmas- Brother? My local Wineshop has a couple of the Chocolate Raspberry Ports I have been drooling over. She even gives you half price off for a 3 gallon carboy to make them in!Hint. Hint.
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Edited by: appleman
 
If you arent going to get 1 I would like to send you 1(being a bottle, not a kit) !
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smurfe said:
I needed a six gallon carboy today so I decided to bottle my Wine Expert Estate SeriesWoodbridge Ranch II Cabernet Sauvignon. It has been bulk aging right at one year I believe. I had brought this kit home from Winestock 1 and made it right after.


Hi Smurfe,


That's great to hear...I made that one and bulk aged it for two months, then after bottling it in August had some tonight and really liked it.


Did you only do the oak packets at first or do more additional in the bulk aging carboy?


Mine doesn't have the nose that you mention...but am hoping it might come in time.
 
laneygirl said:
smurfe said:
I needed a six gallon carboy today so I decided to bottle my Wine Expert Estate SeriesWoodbridge Ranch II Cabernet Sauvignon. It has been bulk aging right at one year I believe. I had brought this kit home from Winestock 1 and made it right after.


Hi Smurfe,


That's great to hear...I made that one and bulk aged it for two months, then after bottling it in August had some tonight and really liked it.


Did you only do the oak packets at first or do more additional in the bulk aging carboy?


Mine doesn't have the nose that you mention...but am hoping it might come in time.


I didn't add any extra oak. I made it per the directions. Only thing I added extra were some extra sulfites.
 
I had always heard that when making a kit wine you should follow the instructions exactly but after reading some of these posts it looks like it's okay to bulk age for several months before bottling. I just started a World Vineyard Pinot Grigio the other day. Would it benefit from a few months of bulk aging in the carboy before bottling? I think I read a post from PeterZ saying that bulk aging will also help the degassing process. Is this correct?
 
Time will always help a wine. It will aid in degassing as it gives it more time to get it out cause once you bottle it its in there for good. Bulk aging also helps by keeping the wine at a more stable temp as it takes alot to raise or lower the temp of 6 gallons then it does 750ml and temp fluctuations are not good for wine, especially if they are in a bottle with a cork.
 
Bulk aging serves several useful purposes. The wine in the carboy has less temperature fluctuations so it starts aging more uniformly. Degassing is also aided. Some of the C02 in the wine naturally works it's way out of the airlock. One of the most important things is that it is safer against you! If you take wine out of the carboy to sample, you need to replace it to keep it safe, so you let it alone longer! I typically bulk age a minimum of three months and try for six-9 months. If you plan on aging that long, a 1/4 tsp of K-Meta is useful in protecting it while aging.
 
I always say that you can follow the instructions exactly, but when they say to bottle it, just put in one big bottle (carboy), place it under airlock, and forget about for 6 months to 1 year. Just check the airlock each month for water levels. After that, then bottle it. So, technically, you are still following instructions, and later on, you are just transferring from a big bottle to smaller ones
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Glad to hear about the quality of the Lodi II Cab. I just started mine last night (following directions exactly) The only problem I will have is waiting at least a year befor sampling. Does anyone have any experience with the WE Zin? I like a "big" wine and would like to try that one next if reports are favorable.
 
Sorry if this sounds like a silly question but when you state that you have "bulk aged for a year now", is that done in the carboy for that entire time? If so, does anything other than topping off the wine take place during that period?
 
Welcome here AndyBoy. Don't be afraid to ask any questions. While a wine is bulk aging it is in the carboy under an airlock to keep it safe. It helps to age the wine and remain more stable while doing it. Until the wine is clear you can rack it to a clean carboy about once a month. Every few months check the free S02 level and if it needs raising use about 1/4 tsp Potassium Metabisulfite per 6 gallon carboy. I'm sure others will add a few things of what to do for you.
 
welcome Andyboy, Bulk aging in a carboy lets you get some age on a wine and make sure it is not dropping anymore sediment. When your conditions for storing a wine in a bottle are not great such as varying temps in the house then this is the best thing you can do. Temp fluctuation make your wine in a bottle expand and contract which draws in air through the cork and will bring the shelf life of your wine down considerably. Aging in a carboy will greatly reduce this as it takes a lot more to raise and or lower the temp of 6 gallons vs, 750 ml. It also helps to keep your hands off the stash until your wine has matured.
 
Thank-you both, Appleman & Wade, for your insightful responses, I very much appreciate the time taken. My goal of course is to create the best possible Mondavi, Meridian or Chateau St. Michelle-like wine right here in my basement. With regard to the aging process though, I am wondering what the optimal aging vessel is (assuming cool, dark and consistent conditions); carboy or bottle? I live in South-Eastern Wisconsin where we have long cold winters and short but humid summers while we also have dark, cool basements. Therefore, I was planning on letting the wine age in the bottle, unless of course I'd be better off keeping it in the carboy (Temptations of all those bottles staring me in the face notwhithstanding!). Again, what I'm looking for are the best possible results.


Also,Appleman stated that the wine, if aged in the carboy, can be racked once a month or so; does this not expose the wine to more oxygen and therefore negatively affect its outcome?


Lastly, how does one check the SO2 (sodium dioxide, correct?) level?


Thanks in advance forany and all assistance and Happy New Year! May you all be blessed with robust vintages and Grand Cuvées in 2008.


Avotre santé (To your health) ;)
 
I would bulk age in carboy for a few months and then bottle age as your cellaring conditions sound optimum. Racking occasionally adds a little bit of O2 whichcan be a good thing as wine actually improves with a tiny bit of O2, too much is a bad thing though. I typically dont rack that often unless it is sitting on a 1/2" of lees or more. As far as testing SO2, there is a good test kit deigned for this and George sells it.
<table ="Catalog" id="products" align="center" border="1" bordercolor="#000000" cellpadding="2" cellspacing="0" width="100%"><t><tr><td ="table" align="default" width="2%"><div align="center">301-10 </td>
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Accuvin Free SO2 Test Kit - 10 Tests


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Tests (green caps), 20 samplers, and an insert with complete how-to-run
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AndyBoy said:
Also,Appleman stated that the wine, if aged in the carboy, can be racked once a month or so; does this not expose the wine to more oxygen and therefore negatively affect its outcome?


By racking once a month I mean torack it until it stops dropping sediment. Probably 2-3 rackings is enough. I would definitely add 1/4 tsp K-Meta at that racking and if tests warrant it, a time or two before.
 
Motomike said:
Glad to hear about the quality of the Lodi II
Cab. I just started mine last night (following directions
exactly) The only problem I will have is waiting at least a year
befor sampling. Does anyone have any experience with the WE
Zin? I like a "big" wine and would like to try that one next if
reports are favorable.



Motomike,

I made the WE Lodi Old Vines Zin starting in March of 07. Bottled it
July 1. Last weekend opened a bottle for progress tasting and was
sorely disappointed! It still had lots of kit smell and all the flavor was KT. Couldn't drink it.

Also opened a bottle of WE SI Amarone at the same time which we
started in May of 07. That was bottled 10/1. Same thing! The KT
was so strong in these two wines that they tasted much the same!
They are both wine but are far from ready yet. I'll give them another 4
to 6 months before trying them again.



BTW, I don't think this Zin is going to qualify as a "Big Zin". While it may get to be drinkable, it isn't likely to get "Big".
 

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