Cellar7 merlot

[Craig57]

Good afternoon, i have just made the Cellar7 7 day merlot kit (which has taken longer than 7 days) and i think as its cleared it is now ready for bottling, however, the wine just doesnt taste nice and smooth, not quite vinegar taste but very slight taste of it. Will this taste dissipate while stored in the bottle or should i leave it in the bucket for a longer period?
Thanks in advance
Craig

 

[Chippy_Tea]

Welcome to the forum Craig.

The first lesson we all learn when we start out - ignore times given on wine, beer and cider kit boxes they all exaggerate some in a big way you say its taken longer than 7 days how much longer?

How long did it take to finish fermenting?

How did you check it to see it had finished and what was the reading?

Did you degas the wine?

How did you clean and sterilise the equipment before use did this include the bottles?

 

[Craig57]

hello , many thanks for responding. The wine took 7 days to complete the fermenting process with a reading of just below the 1.00 reading approximately .098. (had a start reading of 1.072).
The wine was initially removed from the original bucket into a brand new bucket and sterilized fully, it was then degassed stirring 4 times with 5 minute intervals again with a clean sterilized spoon. The stage im currently at is that everything has now been added, stabilser, finings etc, it says on my instructions to leave now for 48hours before bottling.
I am now in two minds whether to transfer again to another clean bucket to remove anymore crud, or just leave it as per instructions.
Just to note ive not sterilized any bottles as yet as i will do this just prior to bottling.
Hope this helps

 

[Chippy_Tea]

It looks like you have done everything as per instructions some suggest racking to a second FV for clearing and some kits don't, most of the kits ive made suggest clearing at .995 so you are not far off and they may be a little sweet but shouldn't have the slight vinegar taste i guess the only way you'll see if the taste improves is to bottle now and leave them a couple of weeks or longer, these kits have a good reputation so it should turn out fine.

 

[Craig57]

Thanks again for replying. Its only been a week but seems longer with all the different advice ive taken. Some say do this, others say DO NOT do that. Bit confusing i have to say. Im quite meticulous when following instructions and have kept and repeated the santising of everything coming into contact with the wine so i know thats not the issue. And to be fair my palette isnt tuned into wine if im honest but my son drinks it all the time and said its not there.
whats more confusing for me is the differences of opinion. I dont want to ruin my initial venture as ive noted everything down ive currently done should i use that product again.
Do you think i should now bottle then and hope it 'matures' in the bottles for a couple of months?

 

[Chippy_Tea]

If you are sure its stopped fermenting go for it.

On the subject of different opinions i tend to follow instructions (my OCD is well known on the forum) some instructions say rack for clearing some say do it start to finish in the first FV (the range store wines i make are all in first FV) if you follow the instructions you wont go far wrong.

 

[LED_ZEP]

The key for bottling is to give the wine a chance to clear. Most kits say 24 - 48 hrs after transferring and adding finnings, I've had few wines clear in 48hrs, I normally find it takes a few days more. As long has you have a lid on it the alcohol that's in it and the stabiliser will keep it protected from most infections unless you are very unlucky for a few days more.

As yourself and Chippy say there are many different opinions on the way to brew but that's half the fun. You will find what works for you as you make more wine. The general method is what you have done so far but but there are always variables that will come in to play even with the same kit done the same way such as temp, yeast batch etc.

 

[Craig57]

Many thanks to the responses and advice you have given me.
One last question before i bore you to death. The clearing issue, how can i tell that the red wine is 'clear'. It looked clear to me when i transferred it to a new bucket prior to adding the stabilzer and finings. Is there something else i need to check to ensure its 'clear' ?
Thanks again

 

[Chippy_Tea]

I recently moved to red wine and its a bit of a nightmare trying to see if its cleared, i guess you could take a sample out with something like a turkey baster but i am lazy so tend to give red 3 days to clear and 2 days for the same white and rose kits, they have been fine so far.

 

[Craig57]

Thanks for the advice. Once again i find myself asking questions about this, can i leave it in the bucket any longer or will this destroy all the hard work ive currently done? When it says it has to be clear, will it do any more harm to leave it that extra day or so? I usually follow ALL guidelines to the letter but as this hasnt gone strictly according to the guidelines, the company i bought this from say that the literature is only a guide and without knowing anything about pitfalls i guess its difficult to know which way is a good way. And as its not the cheapest of kits i didnt want to ruin my first attempt through trying different things this is why i seem to be asking what may appear to be daft questions in the first instance. So apologies for that.

 

[Chippy_Tea]

The is no such thing as a daft question we all start out with little knowledge and learn as we go.

Leaving the wine on the dead yeast for a couple of days wont do any harm i have done this many times when life has got in the way of wine making plans.

I dont like the companies attitude saying literature is only a guide is a bit of a cop out.

If you want to get into this hobby why not have a go at making your own its cheap and tastes great and if you mess up you've only lost a £5 - How to make Supermarket Juice Wine - HERE.

We have never made anything we didn't drink

 

[Craig57]

Erm, i like your idea but i think im a bit off making my own just yet. I need to see if this batch turns out ok ish first before having the courage to progress further.
Hopefully all the dead yeast should have been dispatched when i decanted this into a new clean bucket just before i added all the other finishing ingredients? If there is still some left i hope its minimal now. Is it a good time to taste this wine again now or just bottle it now and wait until i open 1 as i dont really know what it would taste like now or in a few months if that makes sense?
Your opinion and help Chippy has been very welcomed by the way. Thanks

 

[Chippy_Tea]

I would bottle it and leave it a couple of weeks then try one.

 

[Chippy_Tea]

t. I need to see if this batch turns out ok ish first before having the courage to progress further.

If you watch the two videos in post 1 in the thread i linked to you will see how easy making supermarket juice wine is there really isn't much you could do to ruin it, this is how i originally started and i made hundreds of gallons, its a really cheap way of making wine that takes less than 10 days start to bottle and is drinkable straight away.

 

[Craig57]

Thanks again Chippy, most helpful. Tomorrow is the big day then, got 30 bottles to sterilize and clean firstly in the morning then its chocks away.
Guess its not a case of doing things as it says by the book, its knowing how to change the things should something go wrong to make it work out as it should.
First rung of the ladder, hopefully i'll be on the second very soon.

 

[Chippy_Tea]

Keep us posted.

I edited the post above here is the edited version -
If you watch the two videos in post 1 in the thread i linked to you will see how easy making supermarket juice wine is there really isn't much you could do to ruin it, this is how i originally started and i made hundreds of gallons, its a really cheap way of making wine that takes less than 10 days start to bottle and is drinkable straight away.

 

[Craig57]

Hello again, bottling all done, so its fingers crossed now it'll be drinkable.
Ive looked at the post on the supermarket juice wine which looks really good i have to say. 1 question, ive bought most of the ingredients to have a bash but couldnt find anywhere the super wine yeast compund. I have the yeast nutrients though, do i need both of these items?
Also is there a supermarket easy red wine recipe? The one in your attachment doesnt say how to do it only the ingredients needed?
Thanks

 

[Chippy_Tea]

1 question, ive bought most of the ingredients to have a bash but couldnt find anywhere the super wine yeast compund. I have the yeast nutrients though, do i need both of these items?

The super wine yeast compound is just wine yeast with a few little extras so just use a normal wine yeast and yeast nutrient and it'll be fine.

Also is there a supermarket easy red wine recipeAlso is there a supermarket easy red wine recipe?

You cannot make a full bodied red wine using supermarket juice as it turns out like a Rosé wine all these wines are made using the same method so if you follow the two videos in the first post in the link below you wont go far wrong, he only uses 2 litres of juice in his wine buit after making several we switched to 2.5 or 3 litres of juice depending on which juice we were using.

If you have any further questions don't hesitate to ask.

How to make Supermarket Juice Wine - HERE.

This is one wine we made regularly and is a forum favourite -

1 litre Red grape juice.

1.5 litre Apple Juice.

750g Sugar.

1 tsp Tannin or a mug of very strong black tea. (3 bags stirred every couple of minutes as you put the rest of the ingredients together)

1 tsp Yeast (i use youngs super wine yeast compound)

1 tsp Yeast Nutrient.

1 tsp Pectolase.

1 tsp Glycerine. (optional)

1 tsp citric acid or juice of one lemon. (optional)

 

[Craig57]

Wonderful, as always, thanks for the advice given, very much appreciated.

 

[Chippy_Tea]

Keep us posted.