Other Are all kits low acid and low tannin?

I stumbled across an article from winemaker magazine, stating that kits are designed low in tannin and low in acid to mature more quickly.
http://winemakermag.com/38-adjust-flavor-in-the-fermenter-techniques

This is interesting to me because I generally do not test acid in a kit, assuming that things all good and that's been done for me. Seems like it would be worth checking.

There isn't a test for tannins other than tastebuds. But certainly I add tannins in the form of powdered tannins, powdered oak, oak chips, and oak spirals. We also add tannins in the form of grape packs or raisins. It makes sense that we are working to overcome the low tannins of the kit.

Basically, the article encourages winemakers to take control of the process and not assume that pitching yeast alone will make perfect wine.

Interesting article!

Heather

Thats a pretty old article (2000) so 15 years. Kits have changed so much since then that I do not believe the information on kit wines presented to be accurate any more. You can always tweak to your personal taste and most of us do to some extent but the high end kits these days are pretty impressive right out of the box IMHO.

I believe post fermentation taste tests are warranted after the wine has cleared and about three months have passed. if tannin or acid are required additions can be made at that time. aging of reds for at least 1-2 years make a big difference in kit wines.

In my experience, kits are sorely lacking in tannin. I'll have to do some pH/TA tests on my kit wines to check the acid. I greatly enjoy my kits, but even with added tannin and barrel aging, still feel they are lacking something. Maybe it is acid.

It would be interesting to know the acid level.

I made plenty of kit wine before switching over to fresh grapes. Checked every one for pH on the reds (for SO2 additions) and never found them lacking in acid. Tannin, yes, acid no.

On the other side of the fence I still make 3-5 white kit wines each year and after years of comparing a kit white vs a commercial white I do find the acid levels slightly low (to my personal taste) and have been adding tartaric after they have cleared and are in the beginning of bulk aging. I have been using pH and taste on this, not taking TA levels. I find most kit white are coming in around pH 3.3-3.4 and most commercial are in the 3.1-3.2 range. I much prefer the added zing and crispness that a lower pH brings to the table. YMMV as they say.

ibglowin said:

I made plenty of kit wine before switching over to fresh grapes. Checked every one for pH on the reds (for SO2 additions) and never found them lacking in acid. Tannin, yes, acid no.

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How much powdered tannin would you say you like to add to your average kit red (teaspoons per 6 gal)?

I typically use (1) tablespoon oak powder and (1) tablespoon tannins per six gallons for a red kit. Plus two oak spirals during bulk aging.

Curious, and this seems a good place for this poll, does anyone add FT Rouge to the must and get a sour taste to their young wine, that moderates over time? I just sampled my Merlot/Cab Sauv/Malbec from the Chilean stuff I bought, and it has a rather sour taste, not as much as two months ago, but a definite sour taste. It went through MLF (used VP41) and the test showed it had completed.

I've noticed on that wine and a Diablo Rojo kit I did, which didn't go through MLF, that they both have a pronounced sour component to them. The common items in both were yeast (CLOS), grapes (lugs for 1st batch, used skins into the second) and FT Rouge. Both also probably had Opti Red and oak. Diablo Rojo had several bags of dust, the Merlot had medium toast French oak chips. Just wondered if that was normal for a young red wine or induced from adding the FT Rouge?

Any constructive comments would be appreciated.

ceeaton said:

Curious, and this seems a good place for this poll, does anyone add FT Rouge to the must and get a sour taste to their young wine, that moderates over time?

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Well, yes, actually, that does describe me. However, I have always assumed that the young wine would be sour without FT Rouge, too.

I used about 5 gms of Tancor Grand Cru per 23L back then.

pokerinvite said:

How much powdered tannin would you say you like to add to your average kit red (teaspoons per 6 gal)?

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sour_grapes said:

Well, yes, actually, that does describe me. However, I have always assumed that the young wine would be sour without FT Rouge, too.

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Paul, just tasted my very young (2 week old) Dornfelder and did not get the sour taste that I did on the other reds. I omitted the FT Rouge figuring I could use some Tannin Complex later in the process.

Just trying to figure out the root of this flavor, not necessarily to eliminate it since it seems to do that gradually over time, but to better understand the consequences of adding products other than grapes / water / sugar / yeast / stabilizers / and time to my wine.

I make red wine from grapes in the back yard, premium kits and cheapo kits. IME, all kits are low in tannin and acid, compared to actual fresh grapes. Having said that, I really can't drink my grape wine until at least two years, because of the high acid especially. But it is this high acid content which makes these wines age for up to 10 years (not that I've ever aged one over 3 ).

The low acid content of kits, I imagine, is to make a blander wine that a minimum of customers - especially newbie customers - will find offensive. I now add some form of tannin and acid to kits, if I plan on aging them over a full year.