WineXpert Estate Zin

[danc]

My wife bought me the estate Zinfandel kit and i can't wait until sunday, i will finally have time to get started. anyone know of any problems or have any suggestions for this kit?

 

[Brian]

Nothing special danc, I have made this and it is still bulk ageing but I have tried it and it was pretty good even very young. I think this will be a great wine once it is aged a bit..Just follow the directions..

 

[Dugger]

This is a very good wine, but it takes a while for it to mature - my LOVZ is 21 months old and is just now showing how good it can be. Be patient with it.

 

[danc]

yesterday was day six and the SG was down to 0.998. will fermenting this quickly have any adverse effects on taste? I'm hoping the gravity will drop a little more in the next several days.

I will try my best to let this one age, but its hard to do, being pretty new to the hobby.

 

[robie]

yesterday was day six and the SG was down to 0.998. will fermenting this quickly have any adverse effects on taste? I'm hoping the gravity will drop a little more in the next several days.

I will try my best to let this one age, but its hard to do, being pretty new to the hobby.

About the only way to slow it down would be to lower the temperature of the fermenting must.

Lots of schools of thought on that question. The lower the temperature, especially of a white wine, during fermentation, the richer the aromas and the more the subtle flavors will come out.

Some fermentations of big reds from fresh grapes are allowed to go to higher temperatures to extract more color.

Just let it do what it wants to do. Trying to lower the temperature to extend the fermentation time can also result in a stuck fermentation, especially if you try to keep the temperature below 70F.

But since you are fermenting a kit, all I will recommend is don't try to do anything to "increase" the temperature of a fermenting kit. If you use a brew belt or other heat source to get fermentation going, remove it after it is started.

Hope this helps.

 

[danc]

no brew belt. just left the primary sitting in the main floor of my house. the room it was kept in is pretty consistently 73 degrees.

 

[robie]

no brew belt. just left the primary sitting in the main floor of my house. the room it was kept in is pretty consistently 73 degrees.

You can't get much better than that.
You can put two identical kits side by side and ferment together; one will sometimes react very differently.

I have had several kits finish that fast with no ill effects.

The SG might still drop some, so give it some more time.

 

[jdeere5220]

I would echo previous thoughts. I've read that a slower ferment can enhance varietal character while if it gets too warm the yeast can be stressed and that can affect flavor. Yours actually sounds perfect to me. They also say that a vigorous fermentation will finish well and you will end up with a nice dry wine, whereas if you let it get a little chilly it could stop prematurely and you don't want that. I try to keep mine at least 70F, and I usually have to use a brew belt.