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I recently bought the mystic red blend by CC and i can't find anything in the instructions about adding the flavor pack - called sweet reserve. At what point in the process is this added? Or is it optional for added sweetness. Thanks.

i've made several kits and juice pails and never had this problem. I made a pinot grigio from a juice pail. Everything seemed to go well and i transferred to my secondary when the hydrometer was around 1.02. I let it sit in the carboy for 9 months - but now when i taste it - it's very...

After 4 months in a carboy, i just transferred an Amarone into a 5 gallon oak barrel - which has the small bung opening. Is the there something else i should use besides the wood plug -to prevent the plug from being blown out, if there's more fermentation. Is there a special airlock meant...

I got a 5 gallon American oak barrel as a gift. i've filled it with water at least 4 times to prep it for wine. After a few weeks, the water that comes out is still looking dirtyish yellow. As if it was leeching oak or something. Is this normal? Does it need more prepping or cleaning? Is there...

After many kits and pails - we wanted to try making from just the grapes. We bought sangiovese grapes from Corrado's in NJ. Had them crush and destem and when proper SG was achieved - we pressed and put into carboy. We re-racked and added some KMeta at right times. After 6 months, we...

I have 2 wine coolers that each store 50 bottles and are set to a temperature of 56 degrees. However, the coolers are kept in my utility room that doesn't have any heat. In upstate NY, the outside temperature often drops to near zero - and the temp in the utility room can get very cold...

Not poisoning - but shooting at me. Last nite, I stirred a primary in my wine room - and just when i left, there was a loud "shot" sound from my wine rack. Seems like a bottle had shot out it's cork with such velocity - like a bullet - and soaked the room. The cork was on the other side of...

All over the media today, they're announcing research that shows very high levels of arsenic in cheaper wines - like those sold at Trader Joe's. As we know, arsenic is poisonous and potentially deadly in high levels. Common sense says is it probably won't hurt anyone who drinks just a...

I'm now working on my 9th kit and having a blast - with some good results. In all stages from fermentation to bottling - the goal is to keep out oxygen. That's why we use air locks and sometimes top up or add marbles - all to keep out air. But when we drink wine - we need to let it...

I bottled a WE world Riesling 7 months ago. After 1-3 months, it was truly wonderful to drink - tasty, smooth, and balanced. It was stored properly, on its side, in a normal temperature range. For some reason, it started turning 'bad' around 5 months. Developed a slightly 'chemical'...

After i bottled my chardonnay a few weeks ago, i noticed crystals forming. Thanks to this wonderful forum, I learned that they were tartrate crystals - nothing to be concerned about. I was guided to empty the bottles back into the carboy and let the crystals settle out and re-bottle. It's now...

Maybe it's me, but I tend to see alot of raves about Cellar Craft kits compared to the other big boys. I've only used RJS and Winexpert - with very good results. So I'm happy. But am i missing something? I'm about to buy a CC pinot gris kit, but see it's only 16 liters of juice vs 18 for the...

I finished a batch of chardonnay and it was perfectly clear. Put bottles in wine cooler in indoor storage room. In upstate NY, the outside temperatures got very cold and my storage room temperature dropped to just above freezing. After one month - went to check. Wine did not freeze...

Carefully reading my Vintner kit instruction, it says not to top off after putting in carboy for step 2. And even for step 3 - stabilising and clearing - it has you add a small extra package, but clearly warns not to top off - as it will change the character of the wine. Every where else I...

I'm a newbie on my first Winexpert kit. Everything going well so far, except I didn't check my calendar. I have to leave for London 2 days before I'm supposed to bottle. Can I bottle 12 days after Step 3 begins (stabilzing and clearing), instead of waiting 14 days. Or should I cut a day...