Newbie from Yorkshire, UK. All the gear and no idea!

[OhEmGee]

Hello!

I've been doing some research online and just found this site which seems to have loads of helpful posts so thought I better join as I am completely new to wine making!!

My love of wine is well known so my sweet Husband bought me a full starter kit for Christmas. The starter kit was from love brewing and came with a Wineworks 'quick brew' pinot grigio kit which makes 30 bottles in minimum time (no racking or secondary fermantation)
http://www.lovebrewing.co.uk/superior-wine-starter-pack/
http://www.lovebrewing.co.uk/wineworks-premium-pinot-grigio/

The DVD and instructions were a bit basic and sometimes contradictory, and I know my wine kit is for beginners so I'm not expecting anything amazing, but I'm just hoping I don't end up with 30 bottles of cat wee! I do have a million and one questions but I'll post those in the other forum...but I guess at least I haven't killed it yet, or made vinegar, or blown the house up!

 

[BernardSmith]

Welcome OhEmGee. I am an expat (originally from Scotland) but now living happily here. This is perhaps the friendliest and wisest wine making forum. I know the folk here will be happy to answer any of your questions.

 

[cpfan]

That appears to be a 7-day wine kit. You may be better served by extending the time taken a bit. For reference, here's a link to the instructions for a 28-day kit that is more common in North America. You may learn something from reviewing this page.

http://www.rjscraftwinemaking.com/assets/images/products/media/26271%20GC,%20HE,%20VDV39.pdf

Steve

 

[OhEmGee]

Thanks guys!

I've just gone through those instructions and it all sounds very similar to mine. I do have one friend who makes wine and his advice was just be patient so I've already ignore some of the timings on the instructions, such as letting my wine ferment low & slow for 14 days instead of 7

 

[bkisel]

Welcome to the forum!

Personally I would do the kit following the directions. It appears to be designed to give you a decent drinkable wine in that short amount of time. After that kit I would move up to a kit that has you doing a primary and secondary fermentation.

That site you link us to is very informative. Have you viewed their wine making videos? REF: http://www.lovebrewing.co.uk/videos/wine-making-videos/

 

[OhEmGee]

The kit came with a DVD (same as the online videos) and some of it is also posted on YouTube (just found some great cheats for degassing as i'm having to do mine by hand!)

 

[bkisel]

The kit came with a DVD (same as the online videos) and some of it is also posted on YouTube (just found some great cheats for degassing as i'm having to do mine by hand!)

What cheats? Degassing is one of the more tedious processes I go through in this wine making hobby of mine. Currently I use a hand pump and degas over the course of 2-3 days.

 

[OhEmGee]

There was a video of a guy making a degassing stick from an old plastic coathanger and then just attaching it to his hand drill. Obviously he still had to stand there with the drill but it looked a damn sight easier than stirring it by hand! Think he also made a vacuum pump from a domestic vacuum cleaner!

I didn't even know what a degassing stick was this morning, and then when I realised I had to stir it all bloody day I went straight on YouTube!

 

[heatherd]

Welcome to the forum!

 

[Rocky]

OMG, welcome to the forum. I hope you find your winemaking an enjoyable experience. Good luck.

 

[bkisel]

There was a video of a guy making a degassing stick from an old plastic coathanger and then just attaching it to his hand drill. Obviously he still had to stand there with the drill but it looked a damn sight easier than stirring it by hand! Think he also made a vacuum pump from a domestic vacuum cleaner!

I didn't even know what a degassing stick was this morning, and then when I realised I had to stir it all bloody day I went straight on YouTube!

Yes, I believe that plastic hanger formed into a wine whip will save you a lot of hand stirring. I use a paddle styled wine whip and still find that I need to do vacuum degassing. Way back I tried using my shop vac for degassing but in spite of it appearing to be a powerful vacuum around my shop it didn't pull out any gas bubbles. I understand that if you let your wine bulk age long enough it will degas itself.

 

[Jericurl]

Hi and welcome!

This forum is fantastic for helping out, as you are no doubt realizing.
Also, look up Ben's Adventures in Winemaking....I think he may be closer to your neck of the woods if you need immediate help. He's a nice chap.

Also, I have a wine whip made out of a plastic clothes hanger. I only wish it were a wee bit longer, but it works fine.
I've been using it twice a day this last week to punch down the cap on my mead.

 

[rawatts]

nice to meet you ohemgee. hope you enjoy winemaking as much as I.

 

[sour_grapes]

Welcome to WMT, OMG!

 

[Tenbears]

Welcome, Sorry it took me so long!

 

[buzzzkllr]

Welcome. I'm still fairly new (4 months in). Hardest part is the patience. Get a note book and take notes on what you learn, read, etc. I can't tell you how many times I've gone to my notebook to look up something that I took note of. As I find something that works better, or doesn't work at all, I scratch it out and make a new note. It helps me. Good luck. It's fun... but takes soooo long.