Beaverdale cabernet shiraz

[Cw2015]

Hello I'm new and did my first batch of wine.

I used a beaverdale kit after some research. Unfortunately my calculated abv is 11.5%. Pretty disappointing as I like 13% ish wines. However the taste is lovely to think it's only a week after bottling.

Can anyone advise a stronger kit. Or how to modify any kit to produce a stronger wine but without compromising the taste?

Please bear in mind I have only done one 30 bottle kit and one ale kit. So I'm a novice :)

Thanks and merry xmas to everyone

Carla

Xx

 

[Chippy_Tea]

Welcome to the forum :

Adding more sugar will do what you want, what was the SG and FG?

 

[cheapbrew]

Welcome Carla :thumb:

If you have only done two kits do you posses a hydrometer? if not then get one, only a few quid in wilko or elsewhere.

 

[wineguy]

Yeah adding some sugar will boost the alcohol content! or sometimes i brew to 21L instead of 23L. You get less wine but it still tastes great! or maybe try a 10L wine kit??

 

[Chippy_Tea]

Why would a 10 litre wine kit not brewed short have more %ABV than what he is making now?

 

[wineguy]

according to the kenridge information booklet that i have, the red wines are 13 and 13.5%

 

[Chippy_Tea]

Thanks for explaining, i thought you meant any 10 litre wine kit.

 

[wineguy]

No problem! :thumb: Im enjoying all my wine brewing at the moment, getting a great collection coming along! happy days! recently been inveating in more expensive kits in a higher quality and cant grumble with the results! :thumb::grin:

 

[Chippy_Tea]

I am a tight git, juice wines and the odd kit here. :lol:

 

[wineguy]

Oh come on Mr Chippy Tea! haha! which kits have you done in your time? have you done anything above the 10L stuff in any of the brands?

 

[Chippy_Tea]

I started out making 6 bottle white wines I think they were Solomon Grundy kits, I then discovered supermarket juice wine making in the forum and got into that in a big way then supplemented these with the range make your own wines, I then moved onto WineBuddy kits which I still make regularly today alongside the supermarket juice wines.
More about those here http://www.thehomebrewforum.co.uk/showthread.php?t=49462

 

[wineguy]

Oh nice one! i brew fresh fruit wines in the summertime. Elderberry and Damsen are two of my favourites. I do find that the kit wines are pretty easy and convenient and dont mind investing is some higher quality kits! am i allowed to post images of some of the kits that ive brewed recently or is that not allowed in this forum ( I dont want to break any rules)

 

[Chippy_Tea]

i allowed to post images of some of the kits that ive brewed recently or is that not allowed in this forum ( I dont want to break any rules)

Fill your boots fella nothing better than threads with pictures.

 

[wineguy]

Fill your boots fella nothing better than threads with pictures.

Amazing, ill upload some images of those new Mosti Mondiale wine kits ive been raving on about haha, see if anyone recognises them or has brewed any like me.. it seems as though im the only one! everyone is missing out!! hahah :grin::thumb::lol:

 

[Chippy_Tea]

Amazing, ill upload some images of those new Mosti Mondiale wine kits ive been raving on about haha, see if anyone recognises them or has brewed any like me.. it seems as though im the only one! everyone is missing out!! hahah :grin::thumb::lol:

Could you make a new thread thanks.

 

[Cw2015]

Many thanks for your posts

So I got a wine buddy merlot. It states 11% but I want to increase abv. So should I just fill to 21 litres ? Or add more sugar too?