WineXpert FIrst kit, failed to squeeze grape pack - what have I lost?

[waygorked]

Somehow I must have missed in the instructions of my Eclipse Cab kit that I needed to be repetitively squeezing the grape pack. I wound up with a grape pack that didn't get squeezed out until the first racking. What have I missed out on? And how do I get it back?

 

[Pumpkinman]

How far along is the kit?

 

[waygorked]

just getting ready to rack the second time. The grape pack is long gone. It sat in primary fermentation for 10 days, so there was some exposure. I rechecked the instructions, and it didn't specify daily squeezing. It only asked for the bag to be pushed down and gently stirred daily. This I did, however now it appears that most of you are squeezing the heck out of your grape packs. Will I be missing out on tannins as a result?

 

[Putterrr]

I only use a spoon to squeeze the muslin bag up against the side of my primary once a day and then get my hands dirty for the squeezing at first racking. Some prefer to get their hands dirty every day.

It appears that you followed the instructions so I'm sure everything will be as the manufacturer intended.

cheers

 

[Geronimo]

You didn't miss out on a lot. It will be fine. The grape packs are broken down such that during the fermentation, the ever increasing alcohol content is going to tend to tincture out the sugars and tannins in the skins anyway. The grape pack is like seasoning... your steak will have a little less black pepper on it. You'll still enjoy it!

 

[SouthernChemist]

I doubt you're really missing out on much considering how long you had it in contact with the wine. You also said you did squeeze it out at the end. Not everyone squeezes the grape pack.

 

[Pumpkinman]

Geronimo, the grape packs in the Eclipse kits are a bit different than others that I've used, they are very thick, the sugar in them actually raises the SG, these really need to be worked until that thick paste is dissolved, but I'd be surprised if it didn't dissolve during fermentation; that said, I agree with Putterrr, I only use the spoon to squeeze the muslin bag up against the side of my primary daily. Once the "paste" is dissolved into the must, the skins will get plenty of contact with the must.
Worse case scenario, buy a packet of Tannin Riche and add about a gram or two, this will give you the astringency that we expect from a good Cab.
I'd wait a month or so before you add anything, the wine is very young and still developing.

 

[GaDawg]

Pumpkinman "Worse case scenario, buy a packet of Tannin Riche and add about a gram or two, this will give you the astringency that we expect from a good Cab."
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As a first time wine maker I think the best thing Geronimo can do at this point is follow the instructions

 

[wineh]

I do not believe you need to squeeze the grapeskin bag every day. Push it under daily, and squeeze it well before racking (to get all the wine out) and you're good to go.

 

[Rocky]

Waygorked, I don't think you have a lot to worry about here, but I respectfully disagree with many of my friends and I confess to being a "daily squeezer" of the grape skins. My feeling is that if one is making wine from grapes, squeezing is not necessary due to the sheer amount of grape skins. In using a grape pack, the amount of grape skins one has is far less and squeezing daily gives better extraction from what is there. I know that when I do this, the grapes plump up after each squeezing, indicating that liquid is flowing back into the skins. In any case, it does not take a lot of effort and it "kudent hoit."

 

[bkisel]

The two RJS WS kits I've done had me in primary "Using a sanitized spoon, gently stir the “Grape Skin” down daily
during primary fermentation stage." and going into secondary "Squeeze out grape skins to maximize colour and tannin extraction.". I think you'll do just fine.

 

[Geronimo]

I didn't mean to advocate being a "non-squeezer" I'm simply saying that it's not the end of the world. I agree that squeezing helps get the extraction you want, especially on days 1 and 2.

In my experience squeezing the whole raisins the first several days makes the biggest difference. The gooey raisin packs (WE Eclipse, RJS Winery Series, and Cellar Craft Showcase) need a good "squeeze massage" at least for those first few days. The RJS GenuWine dried skins actually just need it later in the primary... days 4-5-6 or like that.

 

[waygorked]

Thanks for all the replies. Continuing with the theme of "there are no stupid questions, only stupid people," if it were the case that I was down a bit on tannins, at one month how would I know? I was under the impression (probably mistaken) that tannins start big and mellow with aging, and that heavier initial tannins are necessary for the wine to hold together for longer aging. I am after an oak bomb with this wine, so I expect to throw in another spiral along with the cubes when the time comes. I expect this will fatten up the tannins a bit as well.

Assuming that any of the above is true, should I be looking for too much bite at the one month stage, indicating that my tannins are going to mellow over the next year?

 

[Pumpkinman]

I would age that cab a few months before I even thought about tannins.
Make sure that you SO2 levels are adequate.

 

[Geronimo]

if it were the case that I was down a bit on tannins, at one month how would I know?

Frankly, you can only assume. Vinters learn their grapes and the early indicators of taste. Save it to say that almost all wine kits are aimed at a medium tannin content. You probably reduced it by some small amount, but a typical Cab is a little higher than a lot of other varieties.

In my opinion, you need to weigh the risk vs reward of tweaking at this point.

 

[waygorked]

I absolutely agree, and as a first time maker, this entire process is a risk. I guess the big questions have become at what point do I decide if the tannins are ok, and how would I tweak them if they are not?

Sorry, I know I'm being a control freak. I started this to learn more about wine. I'm still coming to grips with this concept of waiting 2 years to learn the consequences of my choices.

 

[SouthernChemist]

I think you should end up just waiting to see how the kit develops as Pumpkinman stated. Better to get an idea of how the wine stands rather than just assume it's missing something. You can always add tannins later.

 

[Rocky]

Waygorked, I think all of us are saying you are going to be fine. Just be patient and give the wine a chance to develop. You started with a very good kit and that is more than half of the battle.