WineXpert Wine Expert California Moscato

[blackspanish777]

Ok the packaging does not say. It is LD Carlson if that helps. Only thing remotely resembling a number is the diamond pattern that has the numbers that trucks use for hazardous load. And that has a one. I'm confused now.


Making wine in South Texas since March 2014

Cibolo Creek Cellars

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[Dale1978]

I maybe totally off base, cause I am by far not an expert in wine making. I would almost bet your solution is .1, that being said your TA would be .55% and that would be low acid level causing the flabby taste. Upon Turlock advice, I go by Ph more than TA. I tried PH strips at first, but bought a meter and found it to be more accurate. If you get your PH correct the Ta will fall in place. But I have it in my mind this is a kit and it should be balanced, so why is it tasting flabby. At this point I would find a way to test your PH and that will tell you where the acid level is. I did send Turlock a PM and asked him to look at this thread and give his advice. So maybe he will add his wisdom and shed some light.

 

[dangerdave]

I check the pH of my muscato in which I used the raisins in the secondary. After calibrating my probe, the pH was 3.45. Hope that helps.

 

[ibglowin]

The whole point of buying a kit is YOU DON"T HAVE TO UPGRADE/TWEAK/ENHANCE…………

If you want that level of excitement buy fresh fruit.

Your just asking for a disaster and or disappointment by messing with a kit.

Any questions?

After I read this post, I was thinking, it would be nice of winemaking forum to have list of kits. And on that list people can input how your can upgrade/tweak/enhance the kit to make it better. That would be AWESOME!

 

[SouthernChemist]

Ok the packaging does not say. It is LD Carlson if that helps. Only thing remotely resembling a number is the diamond pattern that has the numbers that trucks use for hazardous load. And that has a one. I'm confused now.

www.sekulafamilyfarms.com

That's a safety label and not an indicator of the concentration. Strange that it would not be listed on the bottle. A TA value of over 1% is high, and I would think you'd use other words besides 'flabby' to describe a wine with that much acidity. You could try adding a little acid to the wine to see how that affects it. Without tasting it myself, I would say it tastes flabby because it doesn't have enough acidity. Then again, there should be no reason to mess with the acidity being that this is a kit.

 

[blackspanish777]

OK tasted it again last night. I know it might not be right, but I added ice to it to cool it down and my wife liked it after a little ice melted. My first thoughts now are that it does not taste flabby like I first thought... It seems more almost like a bite now. I am thinking I might get a PH meter to test that but I am just going to let it sit. I think it will be ok.

 

[dangerdave]

Don't Hit Yourself!

The whole point of buying a kit is YOU DON"T HAVE TO UPGRADE/TWEAK/ENHANCE…………

If you want that level of excitement buy fresh fruit.

Your just asking for a disaster and or disappointment by messing with a kit.

Any questions?

I have experienced neither disater nor disappointment after tweaking my kits. Most of them I have made per instructions first, then added my own brand of enhancement to the next (if I liked the original kit).

It's like enhancing a steak with seasoning. It might very well be good cooked plain, and might please most people that way, but what a wasted opportunity to make something awesome!

 

[joeswine]

Muscato enter the mix

Muscato that is in the kit format is not the same tasting muscato that you would buy in a store especially if it's from italy,most of these $80.00 dollar kits are decent but lack character,that's the time to make it your own,and if you mess it up with in the correct flow you can't go that far off the path of correction,but if you tweak with out asking the correct questions or questions at all then your asking for a problem and even then you should be able to adjust it takes time and patients.

 

[blackspanish777]

Thank you all for your advice here. So I bought a PH tester and my pH is 5.76. That is quite a bit off from what Dave had on his. Any thoughts? This is the first time I have ever tested pH so I have no idea what a normal reading is.

 

[Dale1978]

That would explain your flabby taste, you said you were having. That reading means you have a low acid level. White wine should be 3.2 to 3.4 and reds 3.3 to 3.5, is the ranges I use. Add some sort of acid, whether it is acid blend or tartic acid to lower ph to the correct level. I am still not sure how it turned out this way being a kit. Kits are supposed to be balanced unless you added a lot of water, more than it called for in the beginning or topping up with water after primary fermentation. Hope this helps.

 

[blackspanish777]

I assume there is a calculation for this?


Making wine in South Texas since March 2014

Cibolo Creek Cellars

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[Dale1978]

I know I have seen calculations, I usually add 1/2 tsp at a time until I start getting close to where I want to be, then I go to 1/4 tsp to fine tune by. I know there is a more precise way, but this is how I've learned to do it. Since you are at 5. You may want to just use 1/4 tsp. Maybe someone else will come on and teach us a more precise measurement.

 

[ibglowin]

I have a hard time believing that number. Could we please have some more info on the pH meter. Model, Make. Did it come with Buffers? Did you calibrate it with said buffers? Are you rinsing with distilled/deionized water? What pH are you getting on deionized/distilled water? Wine Expert would not release a product with that high of a pH.

 

[blackspanish777]

OK I bought it from Midwest.

http://www.midwestsupplies.com/checker-1-economical-ph-tester.html

I basically took it from the box, rinsed and sanitized it and stuck it in the wine. I didn't even read the instructions. So I probably needed to calibrate it looking back now.

I didn't make any adjustments on the wine yet. Hoping to have some time to work on it tonight.

 

[ibglowin]

You need to pick up some 4.01 and 7.0 Buffer solutions. Some storage solution as well. See the note below:

Note: Recommended additional products: pH meter buffer solution 7.01, pH meter buffer solution 4.01, storage solution for pH meters, electrode cleaning solution, located in the related products section (to the left) for easy ordering.


You have to calibrate with the 4.01 buffer solution(s) each time or once each day you use the meter.

 

[blackspanish777]

Ok I feel stupid. When I tested I was so excited i didn't calibrate nor take off the cap. My apologies. My buffer solution should be in on Friday. Sorry all!


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Cibolo Creek Cellars

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[byathread]

Luckily you didn't start adjusting already! There is certainly no way that is a correct pH so no need to make any adjustments just yet. This wine will be fine even if you need to adjust, but "measure twice, cut once right"!

 

[blackspanish777]

Ok so got everything I needed to test ph correctly. It is perfectly inline. However, letting it set this long has made the wine mellow and it is silky smooth and tastes amazing!!! My wife (who was the biggest critic) calls it the best moscato she has had. Will bottle tomorrow.


Making wine in South Texas since March 2014

Cibolo Creek Cellars

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[SouthernChemist]

+1 for Chemistry

 

[byathread]

Even a couple of weeks can work wonders for a young wine. Now give it 6 months in the bottle and you'll really be rocking!