RJ Spagnols En Primeur Woodbridge Cab Sauv - the story so far

[flicman]

My first wine kit. My first attempt at anything like this.

I'm doing it all wrong, it would seem, but the people at my local store don't seem to be phased by anything, so I'm just riding it out. Basically, I ignored the entire kit of chemicals, put the skins and half the oak in the bag and let it sit in primary too long (unexpectedly got called out on tour).

After racking it into the glass carboy, there was a tiny bit of bubble-action in the O2 trap, but very little. I think we went from .998 to .996 in a bunch of weeks. I also let it sit in secondary with too much air at the top for three weeks, probably oxidizing the heck out of it, but what's done is done.

Tonight I did a clarifying racking and put the juice into a second glass carboy. I'm down a little bit of juice from leaving the sediments, so tomorrow I'll go get some marbles (where do you buy marbles, anyway?) and top up. I also gently moved the carboy into the house from the underground garage where the temperature is lower, but more stable. I'm just going to see if the thing ferments any more in the mid 70's before taking it back downstairs and relegating it to a dark corner for the foreseeable future.

I have tons of questions and have been getting great info by reading here over the past few months on and off, but I'll just sort of put this out there for now. I'm happy to hear any advice or admonitions, and I'm sure I'll post actual questions, too, as time goes on.

 

[Wade E]

I highly dought it will ferment anymore as you are very dry now, you will most likely see some action in your airlock though as warmer temps will let the wine release C02 out of suspension. (Colder temps like that make it hadr for your wine to clear as C02 is trapped in your wine not letting the finer solids fall out. 3 weeks with your carboy a little low may not have done much if anything due to those temps and all the C02 in your wine. If I were you Id get a bottle of commercial Cab instead and use that to top up your wine as youll get it back in the end anyway and 1 or 2 bottles wont cahnge the taste of that much volume.

 

[flicman]

Thanks, Wade.

So you think I'm pretty much ready to put this carboy downstairs and leave it for a few months? Should I use another stopper, one without the O2 trap in it, or just check the trap periodically and refill?

Is it just a matter of tasting to determine when the wine is ready, or is there something more scientific to be done from time to time to determine the readiness? I'm under the impression that if fermentation is done, the SG won't change anymore, right?

Thanks again!

 

[rawlus]

use an airlock and the atmospheric pressure will cause the liquid to expand and contract as well as an airlock will allow some off-gassing of dissolved CO2.
if you have not used any sulfites up to now, now is the time to apply some - typically 1/4teaspoon per 6 gallons.
keep an eye on the airlock liquid, set a calendar reminder or something to check it every few weeks... you do not want that to go dry.
top with a cab instead of the marbles, unless you really really like santizing marbles and dealing with racking out of a carboy full of marbles and the added weight of marbles and so on... one or two bottles of moderate price cab will be fine and won't noticeably affect the taste of the final product. you might even consider using a merlot or something to maybe add some merlot characteristics to the wine.
plan on aging 1 year minimum. probably more like 2 years at least for en primeur, though i have not made an en primeur myself.
the SG won't change at this point.

how does it taste now? was the oak addition you made early on enough for your taste or do you prefer more? you can add oak at this point if you like - i like spirals in bulk aging for ease of use and handling.

 

[flicman]

Right now the juice tastes like a cross between grape juice and wine, although that's probably not exactly correct because it's not sweet at all, just thinner and harsher than wine should taste.

I have no idea whether the oak is enough - I don't like my wines too oaky, although Cab can certainly carry more oak than other varietals. I don't know if I should add any more, really, so I guess I'll just taste occasionally and figure it out as I go.

 

[bka4]

Age It

I fermented at Delu Ranch Woodbrige Cab Sav in 1/08, and found that it "turned the corner" at 2 years and 4 months. Prior to that, the wine was somewhat harsh and peppery. I have found over the past 3 years of winemaking that RJ Spagnols Cellar Classics are OK at 6 months and age gracefully up to 2+ years. Cru Selects are really not that great before 1.5 years. En Primeur wine seem to take 2+ years to reach their stride.

If you are new to winemaking, I would start with a lower level wine - waiting 2+ years is really difficult if you don't have some other "easier" wines to drink. Whites are almost drinkable within months of fermentation - but reds are more contankerous!

As for topping up, I just use a wine I have on hand. I don't ever use marbles - just top it up with some cab sav from somewhere else.

I bottled 2 carboys today - Merlot and Pinot Noir - each at 1.5 years or so. I probably won't even try to drink them for another year (both EP).

Started 4 RJ Spagnol kits yesterday - 3 CS and 1 EP.

I am no expert, but I hope this is helpful.

BK

 

[jdeere5220]

The SG should NOT change anymore. During aging the tannins in the wine combine with the acids in the wine to make different long-chain molecules. There are articles about this all over if you want to read them, search for "secondary fermentation" or "wine aging".

Bottom line is that high-tannin wines have a bitter or sharp taste when young, and this turns into a "long dry finish" if you can give the chemical reaction some time, say a year or so. After 2-3 years most kit wines have peaked, since they are designed to be ready to drink before then. I guess some commercial reds continue to improve for 8 years or so, but I can't afford those anyway!