muntons premium chardonnay 30 bottle kit

[tonyhibbett]

I got this at half price from Wilco. Normally, of course, I might avoid it, but at £18, worth a stab. It is at least honest. 40% gjc, of which half is chardonnay. So, can you make a chardonnay from 20% chardonnay grape juice? Obviously not. I used 5 litres of Aqua Pura bottled water and 12 litres of alkaline tap water, plus 16 g of Youngs oak chips and 1 g. of tartaric acid. The sg was 1086, which is fine, but the acidity was questionable. The total acid was a mere 2.4 ppt (as tartaric). This is really low. Extra tannin was included, but considering the grape element is only 41%, the natural acidity would be deficient by 60%, resulting in a rather bland wine, which is probably the intention! Not my taste so I added another 4 g, of tartaric acid, which brought the pH to 3.2.
I somewhat misjudged the temperature, pitching the yeast in at about blood temperature, which could be a bit risky, but ok for bread yeast.
Quite honestly, I don't expect much from this brew, but I will keep an open mind.

 

[tonyhibbett]

It's fermenting but not that lively. It then occurred to me that it would also be deficient in natural yeast nutrients, so I added 3 teaspoons and the yeast immediately went into turbo mode!

 

[tonyhibbett]

Fermentation stopped at 0.996, so medium dry theoretically. PH stabilized at 3.2 which is as intended. This could end up as a 12 day wine.

 

[alanywiseman.]

The total acid was a mere 2.4 ppt (as tartaric).

Not my taste so I added another 4 g, of tartaric acid, which brought the pH to 3.2.

PH stabilized at 3.2 which is as intended.

Are these all measurement of pH or TA? What are the units of TA, is it g/L tartaric acid (if measuring in tartaric acid)? I ask because I have just started a elderflower wine that has a TA of 2.7 after adding 50g Tartaric acid to 18L of wine. Was hoping to get it to at least about 4.

 

[tonyhibbett]

They are pH measurements, using a calibrated digital pH meter. No TA has not finally been assessed as yet. The cleared wine has a pH of 3.3, presumably due to the degassing of co2. More importantly, it seems like quite a nice wine!

 

[tonyhibbett]

50 g tartaric to 18 l would be 2.78 ppt tartaric, so another 20 g would get you around 4 ppt. If you topped up with malic rather than tartaric acid, it would give you a better balance of acids.

 

[alanywiseman.]

Thanks for that :thumb:

I have just started trying to get my head around the whole TA stuff and I think I am getting there. I will do as you so and go for 20g malic to give a better balance. Thanks for the help :

 

[tonyhibbett]

4 ppt appears to be the low end of an 'acceptable' range of 4-7, but suitable for light dry wines. However, I tested a commercial sauvignon blanc, which had a TA of 3.6 ppt., which perhaps reflects current popular taste. The pH (3.2) was the same as my current brew, which has a TA of 4.7, which illustrates how TA provides a more accurate measure of acidity.

 

[tonyhibbett]

To conclude: a very pleasant wine with no bouquet and a bit dark. It would benefit from even more additional acid and some added tannin. Better than the Winebuddy version. Net yield is 21 litres. Not really a chardonnay though.

 

[alanywiseman.]

Good to know for further experimentation Tony :thumb:

 

[tarquinkrikery]

Hi Tony,

I just bought the same kit as it was £20 when I went to Wilcos yesterday.

I'm a bit of a newbie and other than a WOW and a few wines from grape juice, I've not done much yet. This is my first wine 'kit' but I thought for the cost it's fairly good value.

Other than the addition of tantric acid (going for 4g as suggested) is there anything else I could add to give a more fuller flavour or improve it?

Basically if you were going to do this again what would you do to make it better?

Any help grapeful (lol) :)

 

[tonyhibbett]

Given the weather, I chill it and carbonate it with a Sodastream. Another refinement is to make a Bucks Fizz with this and a mixture of orange and grapefruit juice, with 'bits', served in a tall glass while listening to Test Match Special on digital radio, served with fresh white currants, red gooseberries, golden raspberries and strawberries from the garden. Alternatively, a tomato and onion salad, served with a decent dressing works quite well.
It's not just what you drink, but what and who you drink it with that makes the qualitative difference.

 

[Tim_Crowhurst]

Other than the addition of tantric acid (going for 4g as suggested) is there anything else I could add to give a more fuller flavour or improve it?

Tantric acid? Does that mean the wine will make you horny?

 

[zalastar]

To conclude: a very pleasant wine with no bouquet and a bit dark.

You're not kidding it's a bit dark, I've just racked mine off after 21 days in the primary and thought it had all gone horribly wrong. It looks like over brewed tea in the bucket and a very dark lager in the glass. This thread reassures me a little though and it doesn't taste too bad, if a little dry after the extra 11 days fermenting. Hopefully a drinkable brew soon :-)

 

[tonyhibbett]

White concentrate does darken after long term storage, which suggests old stock was used. The flavour is unaffected.

 

[zalastar]

That'll explain why it was £20 in Wilko then, still can't grumble at that price for 30ish bottles, it all goes down the same way in the end :drink:

On the plus side this kit had cleared a treat in the primary FV and is crystal clear after first racking, the extra 11 days was certainly worth it.

 

[tonyhibbett]

I just started the sauvignon blanc kit and gave the concentrate a good sniff. It has a distinctly 'caramel' smell and look. This happens when white concentrate is stored for long periods in very warm conditions, causing it to darken and also affects the flavour, reminiscent of Madeira wine. Although the pack has a valid best before date, the concentrate itself is way past its best.