Heron Bay Premium 4 week Merlot Kit

[Rich]

Started this kit last night, following the instructions to the letter. Apart from adding Gervin yeast No.2. Might take longer than 4 weeks with this yeast though.

Looks a bit odd with small oak chip/shavings floating in it.

Starting gravity was 1.092

Pic of it this morning, and another of how dark it looks, it's got a big maglite behind it(turned on!) That's the small sample off to Bobs lab for analysis..

Link to Heron bay kit HERE

Will keep this updated as it progresses hopefully.

Rich

Sample from Bobs Lab says it's at 3.9g per litre of acid, which I'm assured is ok.

[Rich]

I had said hopefully updated on this....
went into the secondary on the 24th August and finished ferementng and finished fermenting by 31st August, steady SG of .992 on the 1st Sep. It's had the supplied clearing stuff put in on Sunday and Monday night this week, and stired as directed.. (by Mrs Rich as I was away

Looks like it's settling nicely and will get racked off at the weekend or so as time allows.

not sure if to age it in bulk or get it into bottels soon ish. The whole idea of this one was to have some to drink quickly.

Rich

[Duffbeer]

Drink it Rich, it won't be at it's best, just get another going, or bulk age 1 gal out of each kit you do, stocks will build after a while, and rather than bottle if your gonna drink it, use a wine box, saves all the hassle, you'll drink more though..

[Rich]

oooooo a wine box, now theres a good idea, hadn't really given that much thought.. maybe 1 gallon could bulk age for a couple of days in the kitchen!

Rich

[lockwood1956]

Bulk age for a couple of days.....love it


you guys crack me up

[StockeyDAW]

Well all you young whipper snappers - the key is to Bulk age at least 6 months for reds to get the best from them. Drinking it early like that -- sure you can do it but it will not be like a good bulk aged one will be.

The trick with this home brewing is to determine how many you drink in a year 180+ 750mil bottles - approx 6 23 liter carboys - get all of those going as fast as you can manage the expense and let them bulk age for the 6 months. In the meantime between making the 23 liter kits do some short term kits to drink quickly.

As soon as you bottle after the 6 month bulk ageing start the process over with the 6- 23 liter carboys--- You will then get to a good supply of wine that is aged properly. Much better than drinking wine that is hot and not the way it is supposed to be. My way anyway -- Cheers DAW

[Richard S]

oooooo a wine box, now theres a good idea, hadn't really given that much thought.. maybe 1 gallon could bulk age for a couple of days in the kitchen!

Rich

Bulk age in a glass, a bit at a time

[Ben]

As aging is just wine going off a little bit, would it be possible to speed up the process? Bubbling oxygen through it for a few days.....

[Richard S]

Blowing Oxygen through your wine would probably ruin it. A rough guide to wine aging is as follows.

The aging process that takes place in a corked bottle is quite different from that which takes place in a barrel. Rather than absorbing oxygen in the bottle, the wine gradually loses it. Although the wine does pick up a little oxygen through the cork, the aging process depends mainly on the small amount of oxygen originally in solution in the wine. Because the oxygen supply is steadily reduced as the wine matures, the process is called "reductive aging".

Tannins are the main preservatives in red wines, and during bottle aging the tannins react with pigments and acids to form new compounds, some of which absorb back into the wine to alter its taste, whereas others settle to the bottom as sediment. This results in slow destruction of the pigments, and red wines ultimately lose their color. The tannins also loose their bitterness, the aromatic qualities of the phenols are enhanced, and the acids and alcohol react with oxygen to lose their harshness by forming new organic compounds called esters and aldehydes.

Because white wines have far fewer tannins and phenols, their main preservative is acidity. White wines with sufficient acidity, as with some Chardonnays, may mature as long as reds, and in a few cases, as with some Rieslings and Chenin Blancs, even longer. As white wines mature they gradually darken to gold, and the acids and phenols mellow to create tastes and aromas described as honeyed, nutty or oily.

Although aging may mellow, and in some opinions enhance, the flavor of a wine, the best time to drink most wines is now. If freshness and fruitiness are what we desire, then there is no point to keeping the wine for years and years, except to find out what happens when the freshness and fruitiness are gone. Some of course disagree, and for a few the older the vintage the better. Most of the dark red wines can be drunk after five years or so, but a few need more time; and a few tannin-rich wines may lose their sweetness long before the tannins mellow.

[Rich]

the best time to drink most wines is now.

Now? It's only 1345! Ok then, if you insist...
Can I save a little bit for later?



Rich

[lockwood1956]

As ageing is just wine going off a little bit,

that actually not true, the wine is evolving, not going off, it's developing structure and tannins are integrating, it is micro oxygenating with the outside of the bottle, but the wine will only go "off" if there is a problem with the sulphite levels or the storage conditions or there is less than 10% alcohol to preserve it or its really really old...

and if you drink a bottle of your wine now, and then another after 6 months and taste again at 1 year old, you will see a huge difference in the wine. I have a batch of Coorvino classico that is a radically different wine to when it was made. It has developed real "power" and complexity, that just wasn't there at the start.

Most kit wines are designed to be drunk within two years, but with the right kit, the right storage conditions, some can age longer than that.

Your fruit wines are best after a year, your kit wines after 3 to 6 months, but they most definately WILL improve given more time, so the best time to drink wine isnt actually "now" unless its the only bottle you have to drink

[Richard S]

Now? It's only 1345! Ok then, if you insist...
Can I save a little bit for later?



Rich

LOL - didn't see that during the cut, copy, paste. Oh go on then, why not!

[lockwood1956]

LOL - didn't see that during the cut, copy, paste. Oh go on then, why not!

Too funny dude

[Ben]

I'm bulk ageing my blackberry wine in demijohns at the moment and I've left a gap of about an inch between the bottom of the bung and the top of the wine. Is this the right size or too big or small?

[Duffbeer]

I'm bulk ageing my blackberry wine in demijohns at the moment and I've left a gap of about an inch between the bottom of the bung and the top of the wine. Is this the right size or too big or small?

It sounds good to me