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Well, the first one is a good 14 years old.

Taking a break while working on our dance circle.

Sadly the dogs grew up and died at 14 and 16 years old.

The self portrait is 3 years old.
 

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Hello, all. Just joined this helpful forum a few days ago. After loving wine since the early 1980s, finally set out to make my own earlier this year as a prelude to possibly planting some vine rows at our home in the Black Hills of South Dakota.

Made my first 6-gallon batch this past August with the Master Vintner Weekday Wine pinot noir wine kit. The process seemed to go quite well, but at bottling after four weeks the new wine was very 'tangy' and did not taste like pinot noir typically tastes. I was concerned, but after just one month aging in bottle the tanginess has largely resolved and it's now starting to taste like a pinot noir.

Earlier this month I made my second 6-gallon batch with the Zinfandel Rosé Wine Kit - Master Vintner® Winemaker's Reserve kit. Also bottled after just 3+ weeks, it is superb. I used two packets of EC-1118 yeast to ensure it turned out dry, did not add any of the provided wine conditioner (i.e., sweetner), and it has turned out really well. Juicy cherry, lemon lime, and blood orange with an excellent mineral base.

Next up I have a Cabernet Sauvignon Wine Cabernet Sauvignon Wine Kit and a Italian Super Tuscan Wine Kit - RJS En Primeur kit to make.. I plan to incorporate medium toast French oak into both and subject them both to bulk aging in glass carboys (6-12 months). Will taste along to guage the oak contribution.

In all, this has been very enjoyable. Finally putting my biochemistry/cell biology degree to good use!
 
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Hello, all. Just joined this helpful forum a few days ago. After loving wine since the early 1980s, finally set out to make my own earlier this year as a prelude to possibly planting some vine rows at our home in the Black Hills of South Dakota.
Welcome to WMT!

One immediate suggestion -- do not bottle on kit wine schedule. Give your wines 3 months in bulk before bottling. You'll find you get more consistent results. Very few wines (other than Skeeter Pee or Dragon's Blood) taste like wine at 4 weeks old.
 
Welcome to the forum. Glad to have you aboard and we can learn from each others' experiences.

Ditto to what Bryan said above. I bulk age my reds a minimum of 1 year. On deck, you have RJS En Primeur Super Tuscan. That is an outstanding kit and I have made it a number of times. Bulk aging of this kit will give you a wine that is the equal of $25-30 wines in the stores.

Good luck and keep us apprised of your progress.
 

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