Going great so far!

[DavidNW]

On my 3rd 30 bottle wine Kenridge Classic wine kit, I did a Shiraz to begin with followed by a Vieux Chateau Du Roi. Both turned out to be excellent - especially the latter mentioned. I'm soon to complete another Shiraz, which I hope will be as good as the other!

I have a few questions that I hope someone can help me with:

I have heard over the years that a wine should be allowed to breathe before serving - is this applicable to kit wines?
When I was making 6 bottle kits, the packet of yeast that came with those kits seems the same size as what I use now for the 30 bottle kits. So, is the amount of yeast no so important? Lastly, still not sure about degassing. I use an improvised wine whip made from a white plastic coathanger and attach it to a cordless drill. I degas with this method for about 20 minutes. The finished wine tastes smooth and when rolled round the tip of the tongue, no tingling is present, so assume all is okay. I had read that degassiing by this method should be done until all the froth/bubbles disappear. I have never been able to achieve this no matter how long I have degassed for - which would of be well in excess of my normal 20 minutes. Any input is appreciated.

Many thanks.

 

[jamesngalveston]

that packet of yeast is good for , 1 to 6 gallons of wine...yeast duplicates and expands it numbers as it ferments.
i use a clothes hanger on all my 3 gallon batch and degass about 20 minutes.
but i do like 3 days in a row.

 

[salcoco]

the breathing of all wines is recommended. alternatively swirling in the glass is beneficial. the wine is kinda like cooped up in the bottle. some oxygen is required to bring out aromas and flavor.

 

[DavidNW]

Thanks everyone - appreciated!