new Winexpert kits

[winemaker81]

We poured the wines at my son's wedding reception last night. 75 people went through a case each of the Chardonnay and Cabernet Sauvignon. I had people tracking me down to compliment me regarding the wine and to ask about wine making.

I am highly pleased with the WE Reserve (10 liter) kits -- both exceeded my expectations. The only addition I made was to add 2 oz medium toast French oak cubes to the Cabernet. Both were bulk aged for 6.5 months before bottling.

 

[MrHerbington]

Great to know, as I just bought WE Reserve California Merlot

 

[MrHerbington]

Is anyone having difficulty getting their WE kits to ferment to zero? I’ve tried three of the new formula kits and each of them refuse to ferment down to 0.990.

The SLD Merlot got the closest, but the new Luna Chard got to 0.995. And, the reserve Nebbiolo seems stuck at 1.000. It’s not bad, but I’m used to these kits going to absolute zero.

I was concerned that it was me. That the basement was too cool to finish fermentation. So I put the Nebbiolo on a brew belt to test that theory. It’s been 4 days at 1.000. I’ll check it again this weekend to see if it’s moved off of that mark. If not, I’ll likely rack it and move to next steps.

I got stuck at 0.994 with California Merlot but its been only a week since and I have not measured it again yet.

 

[winemaker81]

I got stuck at 0.994 with California Merlot but its been only a week since and I have not measured it again yet.

I checked my records -- 2/3 of my reds ended between 0.994 and 0.996, inclusive. The ones that ended lower were either light reds or 2nd runs. I had a few that ended between 0.998 and 1.000.

Keep in mind that the final SG is a factor of the ABV and the solids in the wine. Reds have more solids and typically have a higher FG than whites.

 

[MrHerbington]

I checked my records -- 2/3 of my reds ended between 0.994 and 0.996, inclusive. The ones that ended lower were either light reds or 2nd runs. I had a few that ended between 0.998 and 1.000.

Keep in mind that the final SG is a factor of the ABV and the solids in the wine. Reds have more solids and typically have a higher FG than whites.

makes sense, good to know