- Joined
- Nov 21, 2016
- Messages
- 144
- Reaction score
- 25
I wanted to but we are moving this year so I didn't get one.
Winexpert LE18 thoughts?
- Thread starter kyle5434
- Start date
Help Support Winemaking Talk - Winemaking Forum:
Did anyone besides me order it?
robert81650
Senior Member
Your right, this thread is way too high bred for me and my taste....................
Whuh?
Did you get yours? If so, details about sweetener and yeast?
I also wonder if these WE are now indeed 18L as they claim.
Nope, that's why I was asking if anyone else had received theirs.
The reds with skins are false advertised at 18L when in reality they are 16L. The whites and reds without skins are 18L.
Finally got around to starting the Barbaresco today. SG was barely hitting 1.08. I was kinda surprised by that. I did bump it up to 1.09 with some simple syrup. Also, the grape pack to me seemed larger in this kit. Anyone else started this one and think the grape pack kit was larger than typical Eclipse packs?
Wayne Freeman
Senior Member
- Joined
- Oct 28, 2018
- Messages
- 105
- Reaction score
- 83
I started my Barbaresco a couple of days ago. I was also surprised that the starting SG was a scarce 1.08. The grape skins pack seemed larger to me, as well. I posed a question a few weeks ago about how much the grape skins pack might raise the starting SG, because it has to, doesn't it? Someone suggested that grape packs will raise the effective starting SG by about .015. So I estimate the starting SG of this to be about 1.095. YMMV.
Really looking forward to this one.
Really looking forward to this one.
Wayne Freeman
Senior Member
- Joined
- Oct 28, 2018
- Messages
- 105
- Reaction score
- 83
Maybe it's 16L of juice and 2L of skins? Dump them in together, before adding water, and you've got 18L. Just a guess.
Yes plenty of sugar in those skins to raise your SG. Although, I would say most of these higher end wines start you off closer to 1.10. 1.08 wouldn’t be bad for a white wine, but I want my reds higher than that. I recall a similar situation with the Bravado super Tuscan. It had a really low starting SG. I added simple syrup to that kit as well. Oh well, I’m sure this one will turn out great—especially with a larger skin pack.
Remove the skins after ferment, and you're back to about 16L if you don't count all the water you had to add.
Why don't you count the volume that the added sugar contributes?
Cellar Vader
Senior Member
I'm glad this issue was brought up, because I plan to start my LE18 Barbaresco after my Valroza is finished fermenting (started yesterday.) I'll be following this to see what all of you have to say. Curious, though, as to how much volume this grapeskin pack really comprises. I haven't even opened my box yet.
Why doesn't MM advertise their 23L kits with skins as 25L kits? Simple, because there's only 23L of juice. Would you advertise a kit with 16L of juice, which included several cups of additional sugar in a bag as an 18L kit?
I’m a little nervous to be honest. I will look again but I’ll bet I have about an inch (maybe a little more) of head space in my 7.9 fermenter. I am using BM 4x4 too and that can produce a ton of foam. I guess we’ll see. I have my fermenter in a keg bucket though so if it does spill over a bit no big deal.
This photo of the LE Barbaresco box says 18L... So if it's wrong, it's the manufacturer's error, not the retail sites selling the kits. Or do the boxes that have actually been received show only 16L on the label?
https://www.homebrewohio.com/winexpert-le18-barbarescor-wine-making-ingredient-kit/
https://www.homebrewohio.com/winexpert-le18-barbarescor-wine-making-ingredient-kit/
In the world of WE Eclipse and Limited Editions, the bag of juice in the kits with skins is only 16L. In the kits without skins the bag of juice is 18L. My issue is advertising those 16L kits with skins as 18L. It's not only misleading, it's lame on the part of the manufacturer, as they always charge more for a 16L kit with skins that they label as an 18L kit, than an actual 18L kit without skins.
Gotcha. I thought it had been stated earlier in the thread that the websites selling it were the ones labeling it incorrectly. It sounds to me like the total kit volume is 18L though (16L juice, 2L skins). Of course the juice only ones list the volume of the juice because that's all there is. And the ones with skins list the total of all the main contents (juice plus skins). That doesn't seem deceptive to me, but accurate. I assume the skins are more expensive to produce and package (and from the opinions I've seen here, produce a better wine) than just adding another 2L of juice, so pricing those kits with skins and the same amount of juice a bit more seems reasonable also.
Obviously, opinions are going to vary though and no one is likely to convince the others of the opposite view.
Would you advertise a kit with 16L of juice, which included several cups of additional sugar in a bag as an 18L kit?Gotcha. I thought it had been stated earlier in the thread that the websites selling it were the ones labeling it incorrectly. It sounds to me like the total kit volume is 18L though (16L juice, 2L skins). Of course the juice only ones list the volume of the juice because that's all there is. And the ones with skins list the total of all the main contents (juice plus skins). That doesn't seem deceptive to me, but accurate. I assume the skins are more expensive to produce and package (and from the opinions I've seen here, produce a better wine) than just adding another 2L of juice, so pricing those kits with skins and the same amount of juice a bit more seems reasonable also.
Obviously, opinions are going to vary though and no one is likely to convince the others of the opposite view.
