Mosti Mondiale My first MM kit

[laneygirl]

My first MM ME kit was waiting for me after I arrived home, last night, after being away onThanksgiving holiday/vacationwith my family. I couldn't wait and so got right to it today. I got the Granbarolo so I can make some type of (hopefully) really nice red wine.


I was grateful for the good detailed instructions that George included with the kit since the instructions included in the MM kit were a little "thin".


I managed to get the must into the primary fermenter by myself, although think in the future I'll be recruiting one of my friends who like to drink my wine. I put the primary on a plastic crate and the box/bag on a shelf and just got the spout of the bag over the primary and it went pretty well.


I'll post a picture tomorrow after it gets going. I have a brew belt plus a heating pad held in place with bungie cords on the primary so it'll get to fermentation temperature range. I also positioned it close to the furnace in the basement. It's climbing toward the 70s and am pretty sure it will be bubbling away by morning.

 

[Wade E]

Just make sure that you turn off the heating pad soon as once fermentation starts it will generate its own heat and you might not even need any extra heat as this will most likely be a strong fermentation and you dont want it getting to warm. When it starts to slow down check temp again as it might start requiring a little heat again. Any way we can save a few bucks by not using extra utilities is money to save for another kit!

 

[Jackie]

Sounds good. I siphon juice into the primary using my auto siphon--I use to try to lean the box over enough to pour but too often spilledsome that way and I'm talking about 15L size.

 

[laneygirl]

It was up to 73 this morning and so I removed the brew belt and turned the heating pad down....it still wasn't bubbling much but am sure that will kick in by noon or so, today.
I wanted to siphon it, but couldn't quite see how to do it. There had been a little seepage, softening both inner and outercardboard.I couldn't see how to prop up the bag to auto-siphon it. Pictures of this part would be virtually impossible since there was no one here to help or take them.

 

[bmorosco]

I have also ordered my first MM kit and looking forward to get back into the winemaking swing of things ..It has been a long and busy summer now looking forward to a great winemaking winter!!

 

[PeterZ]

laney, I find siphoning from a large bag to be a three handed job, so unless you look a little weird, you will need a helper. One person holds the neck of the bag up and decaps it, the other puts the autosiphon in a couple of inches and gets it started.

 

[Wade E]

Its about time you showed yourself Benny! Glad to have you back and dont be such a stranger!

 

[laneygirl]

I have also ordered my first MM kit and looking forward to get back into the winemaking swing of things ..It has been a long and busy summer now looking forward to a great winemaking winter!!

What kind of kit did you order? Have you made MM kits before?

 

[bmorosco]

Its about time you showed yourself Benny! Glad to have you back and dont be such a stranger!

Camping and Football and Cheerleading.....that has been my life...My daughter Ashley Made it to New Jersey for the National Cheerleading competition and they did good but no Disney!! Thats ok too close to xmas anyway!! Proud of her! ALSO..My son Matthew has been invited to the underclassmen Combine in Boston for football.. So he is pretty good and I am very proud...Hes even got 3 videos up on berecruited.com if you want to see...Hes the one carrying the ball in all the videos number 41..Just keep in mind that he is only 16....Hes a moose!!! Proud Papa!


http://video.berecruited.com/videos/athletes/138913


http://video.berecruited.com/videos/athletes/138913/85190424Edited by: bmorosco

 

[Jack on Rainy]

Good reason to be out of wine making for a bit, Benny. Those moments
with teenagers pass too quickly! But what kit did you order?

 

[bmorosco]

Mosti Mondiale’s 10L Vinifera Noble Johannisberg Riesling and Mosti Mondiale’s 10L Vinifera Noble Shiraz Merlot..I have always used Wine Expert so this should be fun!!!

 

[laneygirl]

Let us know how those MM Vinifera kits are? I haven't read too much about them on this forum, yet...unless they're older posts that I missed.


Does anyone know why MM kits tell you to stir the raisins for the days of Primary Fermantation? It doesn't seem to me that does much for them. It's sort of like CC kits telling you to stir the crushed grape pack that goes in the muslin bag, but that seems like it's more important to get proper "coverage" of those since they're enclosed in the muslin bag.


Does anyone move the raisins from MM kits from primary to secondary?

 

[geocorn]

No need to move the raisins. All of the goodies are taken in the primary.


Circulation of the fruit is good. It makes sure that you don't miss any of the benefits of the raisins.

 

[laneygirl]

I transferred my MM ME Granbarolo to the secondary on Friday night and forgot to put the oak chips in the bottom first...dang! I just removed some wine (with sterilized tools) it this morning (Sunday) and they're floating on top. I am pretty sure they'll submerge after they soak up a little more moisture, but will watch and continue to push them down until they do.


This made me start thinking more about oaking, though. Why do some kits have you oak in the primary, some in the secondary and then I read a lot about people oaking in the bulk aging stage for various lengths of time? Does the amount of alcohol in the wine help to extract oak or ?? I am wondering if I should be prepared (have oak on hand) to add to the carboy when I start to bulk age?

 

[bonvec]

Becareful, I've read that the reason many kits advise to soak oak is because in some casesthe floating oak will block your airlock and cause pressure to build with potential horrific results.

 

[Wade E]

Laney, the oak chips will continue to float for awhile if not stay that way as thats what mine are doing. The Only time so far that I have had to soak the oak was with the packets. Adding oak during secondary or bulk aging with the high abv will help extract more of the tannins and and flavors such as the vanilla from the oak. A lot of the other kits use dust which has a greater surface area and therefore requires less time to extract and thats 1 reason why they have you do it in primary. The other reason why they have you do it in primary is again they use dust and you dont want to transfer dust to secondary.

 

[andy123]

MM's oak in the secondary seems to be real effective. dont forget to add oak first wine second or you get science class volcano experiment and free brew room mop up session.as far as oak floating, it's ok .kit probably says oak to taste dont be afraid not to use it all.you cant take it back out

 

[laneygirl]

Well, fortunately, I didn't experience the volcano...but did watch carefully and kept stirring with santized stir rod. All seems to be well and should be getting close to next steps....

 

[PeterZ]

The oak will sink in a couple of days, once it becomes "winelogged."

 

[laneygirl]

I discovered today the stopper the airlock is inserted into was bumped out of the carboy neck and just laying on top of the opening. I think my cleaning ladies might have bumped it and that was on Tuesday. Is there anything I can/should do at this point, other than put it back in?
This bums me out since I was hoping for a more controlled environment on this MM ME kit.