RJ Spagnols new kit

[dcrnbrd]

Just ordered the strawberry zin kit. This is my second kit so is there anything different I need to watch for with a white wine than the merlot I currently have going? Has anybody made this kit? How is it?

 

[Wade E]

If you plan n drinking these quickly then there is nothing different, if you plan on aging any then you might want to consider upping the abv by adding approx 5lbs of sugar which will bring then abv up to around 11% and make it so you can keep it awhile.

 

[dcrnbrd]

I am trying to get some built up for drinking this summer then I will work on some to keep. This batch I am starting this weekend is going to be raffled off by the bottle in honor of a friend of mine to raise money for thecancer relay.The crew I work with came up with the idea and a great label idea also.

 

[dcrnbrd]

Wade if I add this sugar how is it going to change the taste? Is it still going to be a sweet wine or will it dry it out?

 

[myway22]

I have this kit as well, what is the ABV without the addition of the sugar?

 

[Jim M]

I have this kit as well, what is the ABV without the addition of the sugar?

What was the starting SG?

 

[masta]

Making this type of kit without adding sugar will produce a wine with a starting SG of 1.050-1.060 and a potential ABV of 7-8 %. This is the intention of the style to be a easy drinking, no aging wine cooler type of drink.


Adding extra sugar increases the ABV not the final sweetness level since this is a function of the F-Pack added after the fermentation is complete and the wine is stabilized. I am sure the added alcohol does change the wine some but I have never done a side by side comparison.

Edited by: masta

 

[Wade E]

Maybe you shouldnt mess with this 1 without making the same kit first. There are a few of these kits with a lot of flavor and some that I wouldnt add due to the taste being very delicate. Id probably leave this as is and see how strong the flavor is on this batch and then decide next time if it will benefit from tweaking.

 

[Waldo]

I did the Spagnols Strawberry/Riesling and it finished off very sweet at around 8%. I plan on doing another one and adding the 5 lbs of sugar to up the ABV to around 10-11% .I have no doubt it will tolerate the additional ABV without much loss of flavor

 

[Wade E]

And theres your answer!