Top 10 List

[MadMan]

Hello to all....


I'm just getting started and am enjoying the friendly atmosphere and assistance. Looks to be a very nice hobby. Can't wait to start. That being said, if you had to pick your top 10 kits (wines), what would be your top 10?


Thank you and Happy New Year to all.


Madman

 

[Wade E]

Welcome Madman, mine would be W.E Stags Leap Merlot, RJS En Primeur Amarone, W.E Raspberry Chocolate Port, Mosti Mondiale La Bodega Port, RJS Orange Blossom Muscat, and all the RJS Cellar Classic Winery Series Reds.

 

[MadMan]

Welcome Madman, mine would be W.E Stags Leap Merlot, RJS En Primeur Amarone, W.E Raspberry Chocolate Port, Mosti Mondiale La Bodega Port, RJS Orange Blossom Muscat, and all the RJS Cellar Classic Winery Series Reds.

Well, we're off to a fine start. Thank you Wade. I do hope many others find this thread interesting enough to share their wisdom and chime in.

 

[Rocky_Top]

Welcome MadMan, I like your user name. It is kindalike warning and an excue. I had a full size 1989 Black 4x4 Chevy Blazer with 38" mud tires and a home made push bar with anEarnhardt plate on it. Only a fool would step in front of it. Everything about it said " I want to run something over"


Sorry, I wish I had some useful info on the 10 best kits. I have heard so much about the Orange Chocolate Port that I will have to get some next time around.

 

[Bert]

Reds, Whites, fruit wines, meads, they are all good....It really depends on your likes and dislikes, but the wines you make are yours and you only have to please yourself...maybe the wife too..

 

[smurfe]

Given the proper time to age and develop, any of the higher end kits can and will be fantastic. The grape pack kits such as the Crushendo's and Cellar Craft kits are fantastic. Others such as the WE Estate series are great as well.


My favorite kits thus far have to be the


Cellar Craft Rosso Fortissimo and Amarone,


WE Crushendo Super Tuscan,


WE Estate Series Stag's Leap Merlot. Woodbridge II (now Lodi II)Cabernet Sauvignon


WE Selection Series Sauvignon Blanc, White Zin, Gewürztraminer


Mosti Master Edition Carmenere Mondiale and OriginalAll Juice Lambrusco


I have made many others which were very good as well. The only kits I have really ever felt didn't meet my expectations were the WE Vintner's Reserve red kits but many really like them. I found them on the thin side in terms of body. Flavor wise they were good and actually make a very decent table wine. The white kits I made were really good though and shouldn't be over looked.


Of course, what you like is what you should buy. Try to get the higher end kits if funds permit. Let it age properly and you will be rewarded with a fantastic wine. Also, welcome to the forums. Look forward to hearing about what you decide on.

 

[GrantLee63]

I'm new to wine making myself so I cannot offer you my thoughts on a 'Top-10' list, but I will tell you what I've made in the past several weeks:


Mosti Mondiale Original AllJuice Riesling


WE Vinter's Reserve Mezza Luna


WE Island Mist Exotic Fruit White Zin


On order: Mosti Mondiale Amarone Mondiale With Red Raisins


So, as you can see, I'm 'all over the map' with regard to the styles and price ranges of the wines I've made - or will be making - so far. I will tell you that you found a REALLY good site here and I look forward toreading and replying toyour other posts.


Welcome Aboard MadMan!


- GL63

 

[PeterZ]

I think any of the high end kits will make an excellent wine. Don't discount the Orchard Breezing and Island Mist kits, though. I made a Strawberry White Merlot that was a huge hit with my daughter, my wife, and all her friends.

 

[jobe05]

Welcome madman, hope you can decipher greatness from goodness with everyones top 10........ I read them and say.... "Oh yea.... That one was good too" . So keep in mind, it's a matter of personal taste (and Memory).

#1 - sweet Scuppernong
#2 - CC Showcase Lodi Old Vine Zin (LOVZ)
#3 - Blackberry Port
#4 - W.E. Stags Leap Merlot
#5 - CC Showcase Amarone
#6 - Scuppernong
#7 - JW's Orange Muscate Port (this should have been #1 since I don't have to make it)

#8 - Watermelon Merlot
#9-Anything that anyone sends me....... Because I don't have to make it. In particular, Joeswine, Wade, JW or Waldo.......
10 - The Music from Ramona....... Relaxing with a glass of wine listening to easy listening music........ doesn't get any better........

Oh yea, there are a few others........ Piesporter, Gerwitz, Symphony, Johannesburg Riesling, Green Apple Riesling and so on.
I hope that helps

 

[MadMan]

Hey Guyz....

This is absolutely fantastic. Thank you for all the welcomes; it's great to be here. After a day in my business and the back-stabbing on the newsgroups in my profession, this is a welcomed pleasure. I look forward to reading and learning much more on this and other forums.

Obviously, we buy and make what we like and we all have our own tastes. However, what I wanted to hear and was happy to hear was the high degree of overall satisfaction with most of the available kits. It reinforced what I already thought.

And yes, I can afford the higher priced kits. I plan on buying 20 or 30 kits to start out. And no, I'm not going to jump in all at once. I'll go slowly and have fun; especially after a couple months. Looking forward to tasting my accomplishments.

I'd like to thank everyone who chimed in and look forward to reading more from anyone who wants to participate.

Happy New Year to all...

 

[jobe05]

Don't discount some of the lower end kits. I got a cheap $45 Shiraz a couple of years ago, made it, bottled it and it was horrible. After a couple of years in the bottle, I'd put it right up there with my CC showcase kits........................ Of course I like Limburger cheese also..................

Cheap kits are somewhat pot luck I guess, but I have had some disappointments with high end kits also.

 

[Wade E]

White wines usually come out very good with the smaller kits but red wines are the hit or miss in this category IMO.

 

[jeffhigdon]

I agree with wade. I've only made about 10 kits so far (13 more this year). You can't seem to go wrong with the whites. I've actually preferred some of the lower end white kits to the high end. Reds seem to be you get what you pay for. Really like the stags leap merlot, and the lodi cab. The delu ranch woodbridge cab is going to be very nice as well.

 

[MadMan]

Thank you to all who posted. It definitely helped.

 

[dfwwino]

I agree with Wade and Jeff. When I first started in this hobby in 94, there was only Alexander's grape concentrate available at my local store. I made very good white wines, but never could make a worthy red. The key to making a good red is to buy a top level kit, preferrably with a grape pack. I've had very good luck with Vintner's Reserve for white wines, especially by adding some tweaks.

 

[Jack on Rainy]

MadMan, Thanks for posting this thread, It is interesting to see what others have recommended.
I am fairly new to this addiction, just two years to the day. That said, I've done 24 kits so far with six more planned or on order this winter. We like reds more than whites so really want to make drinkable reds.
I like whites in summer and have had good luck with the few we've made the best being a Mosti AJ blend which is no longer made. The next best was the first(and of course oldest) white one we made - the WE SE French Chardonnay. We have Trebbiano, Sav Blanc, Chardonnay and a couple of others aging for summer 09 drinking but haven't assessed the results as to favorites yet.
I don't care for our OC Port which is now about a year old.
Our reds are a mixed bag.Six months ago, I decided not to buy any more red WE kits.KTevident even after a year. But late this fall and over the holidays, we tasted several of our WE reds again. Kt was pretty well gone after 16 months. The SE merlot was a favorite over the Lodi Cab and Zin but the real surprise was the WE SI Cab/ Temp blend. It was very drinkable but likely to get better with a little more time.
Our wines from the Mosti lineare just starting to get enough age to see how they are going to come out. The oldest is the Rojo Encantando which is quite drinkable but is nothing special. Our favorite as of now is the AJ Chianti (George just sent another one-we liked it THAT much). The Castel Del Papa is promising at a year old but still seems to need more time. The one we think is going to be the best is a Meglioli Cab which is bulk aging. Ordered another one of those too.
We have one CC kit, the Super Tuscan, bulk aging which is really promising. There is an extensive thread on that one elswhere on this forum.

 

[MadMan]

Hey Jack.....

Well that reinforces the fact that you should not rush any wine before its time.

Gee, what a novel statement.

Personally, I prefer reds so I have it set in my mind that it will be 2 years + before I can perhaps taste my labor. But you just made me rethink the fact that I should make more whites than I had planned.

Back to the drawing board!

 

[dfwwino]

If you are just starting in the hobby, you definitely want to make several low-end white kits to build a stockpile so you don't drink your reds too soon. You can enjoy a good white within 6 months, but leave the majority of those reds alone for 2 years. I suppose you could also build your early stockpile on the Island Mist type kits too.

 

[MadMan]

I appreciate all the replies and there is definitely a method to my madness as you'll soon see. I'm addicted and haven't even started yet! I'm not Madman for nothing.

 

[whino-wino]

I appreciate all the replies and there is definitely a method to my madness as you'll soon see. I'm addicted and haven't even started yet! I'm not Madman for nothing.

You think you're addicted now....just you wait. Oh, it all starts out innocently enough. You buy a kit or two, then 5 or 6 more. Next thing you know you want to up it a notch so you start buying fruit at the grocery store...Then you're going on 2 hour drives to remote areas to pick blueberries, raspberries, mountain ash.....Finally you find yourself making wine out of kool aid, garlic, grass clippings, dog poop or whatever you can find just to prove to yourself that you can....O.k. maybe not the dog poop but I've actually considered grass clippings if you can believe it.


As for my favorite kits, I can't say that I've made a single one that I didn't like. Most of my wines are my own concoctions, but of the kits I've made I would have to rank them as follows:


1.) WE Lodi Old Vine Zinfandel (I have not tried the CC one with the grape pack yet, but that's definitely on the "to do" list)


2.) MM All Juice Sauvignon Blanc (was very impressed with this one,bottled it 9 months ago and I've only got 6 bottles left! Didn't even give it a chance to age properly.)


3.) WE Vinter's Reserve Red Zinfandel (O.K. I admit it, I'm a Zinner. This one will seem a bit "watered down" at first but is awesome if you can wait 2 years to open the bottle)


4.) MM Vinefera Noble Gamay (Made this last spring. Only tried 2 bottles so far but it is not a bad wine at all and is definitely improving. Tried a bottle last fall and another during Christmas break.)


5.) WE Vinter's Reserve Bougeron Rouge (Made this last spring as well. Haven't tried it yet so it's at the bottom of my list, perhaps I should crack one open tonight just to see where it's at)


Honestly, that's all I've tried for kits, although I have made the 2 Zinfandel kits several times each. I can never have enough Zin in my cellar.