RJ Spagnols En Primeur kits

[Jack on Rainy]

Haven't seen any posts on these kits on this forum. Anybody making them? George has one I might be interested in, the Australian Chard. Anybody have info?

 

[Dean]

I've made that one about 2 years ago. 2nd best white kit that I have ever done. The best was also the EP series. That was the NZ Sauvignon Blanc. I actually added a bit of extra oak to this Chardonnay to make it closer to the aussy style. I think I added an extra 25 grams in secondary of heavy french toast to get a vanilla character.

Anything you choose from the EP series is an absolute stunner. I've tasted them all, and have done a great deal of them. The whites in the EP lineup really need about 9 months minimum to get really good, and age very well. The chardonnay I did 2 years still continues to improve slightly, although very slowly now. I think this is one of those few whites that will keep for up to 5 years, but stays at its peak from 18 months on.

 

[masta]

Most of the kits from RJS instruct you to leave them in the primary for 14 days so they complete fermentation and start to degas before transferring to carboy which is different than Winexpert and Mosti Mondiale. The 14 day in the primary method was started due to the fact the fining agent included is Super-Kleer and it is important to degas properly before using this product.
I saw this info about the En Primeur kits regarding the difference in time left in the primary fermenter and thought I would share.


"We changed our instructions back to include the day 6-10 transfer because if you are opening the primary fermenter and stirring it daily it's possibly going to finish the fermentation before day 14. If you are still stirring daily after it's finished fermenting then you could get some oxidation of the wine. You can continue with the old way and leave it in the primary for 14 days if you want, it's not likely to cause any problems."

Lisa Jones

 

[OldWino1]

i do RJ's You have to degass all of them Dont expect the carboy to degass it self.Dont take a chance Early on i had some issues with unwanted fizzies.

 

[laneygirl]

Haven't seen any posts on these kits on this forum. Anybody making them? George has one I might be interested in, the Australian Chard. Anybody have info?

I just started this kit in primary fermenter tonight and am glad to hear such a great recommendation on it from Dean.


One question I have is where to find the date code for RJ Spagnol's kits. I thought I'd read something on the forum about it, but can't find it on the box (like WE) or in the kit itself. Any info on this would be greatly appreciated.


This is only the second white I've attempted and the first was WE Symphony, which turned out to be fabulous. I prefer reds, but occasionally like whites and have a lot of friends that like whites so I'm learning to branch out and enjoy them.

 

[Dean]

There's no secret to RJS date codes. They are not as cryptic as WE date codes, as RJS just uses the proper date. For example if your kit was make on November 12, 2007, the code would be 11122007D. It goes MMDDYYYY followed by a D always. Winexpert codes count the number of days in the year starting from Jan 1 being number 1 and Dec 31st being 365 or 366 depending on the year.

The date code on RJS kits is usually on the copy of the label on the outside of the main box. Ususally in a circle of color on the black box for EPs.

 

[laneygirl]

Thanks, Dean. I found the sticker on the box and it was easy to read...it was from January 2007. Is that considered "old" juice or what is the guage to use on kits?

 

[Dean]

up to 18 months is okay provided it was stored out of direct sunlight and kept cool between 60 and 65. If out of that range, it will be good up to 1 year. Older kits really don't lose on taste, but more on color than anything else.

 

[laneygirl]

I think the kit was stored out of direct sunlight. Since the juice is all boxed up, how can direct sunlight affect it....or is it more about the temperature that direct sunlight can increase?
What will happen to the color? It seems lilke I read somewhere they made an older white kit and it was pinkish. This kits just seemed a little darker straw color....but that seems normal for Chardonnay.

 

[Dean]

This is a darker Chardonnay than most anyways due to good grapes used. There is really beautiful color on this one.

kits that get direct sunlight do heat up quite a bit in the box, so you are bang on there! As far as color goes, white wines turn darker towards brown looking like they are oxidized, and in fact they are starting to. Reds take on a rusty hue around the edges and start to look more like brick red than a deep red.

I think you are really going to enjoy this kit.

 

[laneygirl]

Hi Dean,


I am looking forward to this....I just did a specific gravity reading after 15 days and it's still at .99 and so am going to let it keep bubbling. I've been surprised at how much it has continued to bubble after two weeks of fermentation.


When opening the primary bucket to use wine thief, I noticed the oak tea bag was floating on the top and so while I had lid off decided to stir it up and see if I could get it to sink. Is it typical for the tea bag to float on top like that? I am used to oak getting wet enough to sink down...


BTW....it tasted great and I am not that big of Chardonnay fan....I'm making this one share with some of my friends that aren't such big red fans.

 

[Wade E]

I havent seen 1 of the tea bags sink yet.

 

[Dean]

Yup, I've never seen a bag sink yet.

 

[laneygirl]

I'm glad to hear that from both of you guys since you are much more experienced....I'm wondering how the wine gets all the "goodness" of the oak with this approach??

 

[Dean]

There is still contact with the alcohol, which is what does the job to leach the oak tannins out of the oak. It still gets the same extraction as it would being loose.

 

[Wade E]

Did this kit come with more oak than just the tea bag? they typically have a bag to dump in + the tea bag anyway.

 

[Dean]

If I remember right, the Chardonnay only comes with 2 tea bags. I spoke with Dinesh Nair, the equivalent of Tim V. at spagnols, and he said that he frequently adds extra oak to this chardonnay. I did add about 25 grams of extra oak in secondary on this one, and it was perfect for me. I don't like really oaky chardonnays.Edited by: Dean

 

[laneygirl]

I only got the one tea bag and so will add some extra oak to the secondary...although my kit instructions don't really propose a secondary. They just have 14 days (or .998 or less SG) in primary and then go straight to clarification/stabilization.


Perhaps I'll move it to a secondary now and then add some oak there or at the end while doing some bulk aging. What do you guys think?

 

[Dean]

Yes, by secondary, I meant after stabilizing and clarification. Remember that before bottling, about 1 week before, to add your metatartaric acid to prevent bitartrate crystals, or cold stabilize this wine. I cold stabilized, and this one dropped diamonds like there was no tomorrow.

 

[laneygirl]

Dean, Thanks for the clarification...so, I'll add some oak in bulk agin and it'll probably be cold stabilized based on temp in my basement is about 55 F during winter.