Premium Wine Kits

[koomber]

I've just ordered up my latest selection of wines and beers from Hopandgrape. I'm getting a little boerd of the Young's kits (don't get me wrong, their great for turning out reasonably quick and perfectly decent wines in double quick time). Mostly this is down to scale. The 1 gallon kits make 6 bottles. This is frankly bugger all when put up against my tendancy to drink them. I just find it hard to put them away after bottling them and let them mature.

I was thinking about moving up to the 5 gallon kits and there is a huge range in prices. From less than £20 to over £100. Obviously there is a big difference, and given that even a cheapo kit can produce some astounding wines, I'm guessing that the premium kits are going to be pretty much incredible.

I like the look of the Selection kits, has anyone tried them or have any information as to what one would make a good'un? I hear good things about the Beaverdale too. I think that there will be someone here who has tried them all, and will have an idea of the 'best bang for the buck' wine kit.

[sparky Paul]

IMHO, you can't go far wrong with the Beaverdale or Kenridge Classic kits.

My personal preference is for the Kenridge Classic kits, but they are a couple of pounds more expensive. The Kenridge Classic Barolo in particular makes a very impressive wine indeed, if you like that style - it's one of my favourites. That reminds me... I've got one in the cupboard, I must get on with it!

[mctoon]

I have just finished my last bottle of the Sainsburys Classic " Fruit cocktail basic range".....3 tins of fruit cocktail in syrup, 24p a tin, add all the other gubbins, 3 months later, 6 bottles of the finest ,,,bargain

[scottmoss]

Hi,

I've tried the selection, beaverdale and california conn. I wasn't very impressed with the selection; don't get me wrong it was good but not good enough to warrant the extra poundage.

The Beaverdale Sauvignon Blanc was really nice, I tried it and instantly purchased the kit (still waiting for me to start); I was however told (from leyland homebrew) that Beaverdale get the grape juice from vineco (california conn, kenridge etc).

I've only done the California Connoisseur Cabernet/Merlot within the California Conn range and it was fantastic! Everyone who has tried it has really enjoyed it, so good I've done it twice and I've only got 20 bottles of it left (bottled 3 weeks ago).

A friend of mine has just brewed the Cantina Pinot Grigio and I'm surprised how good it tasted when its really to bottle & drink in 5 days but it wasn't as good as the Beaverdale and California kits I've tried but still very drinkable wine.

Hope that helps.

Scott

[koomber]

Thanks for the advice so far chaps!

mctoon: Don't worry I've got the cheapstuff going too. I want something that I can make up 30 bottles of and have to mature as a showstopper, when compared to some of my more 'rustic' alternatives, such as drink made from fruit juice, tea bags and general country wines.

sparky paul and scottmas: Thanks for the tips. I've gone for a BEAVERDALE CABERNET SAUVIGNON 1 Gallon as a trial. Depending on how taht goes I'm planning jumping over to the Chateua Neuf Du Pape clone the have (Chateaue du Roy?) since I have a major soft spot for that stuff. I'm pretty excited about giving the premium kits a shot now

Shame I'm going to have to wait till April pay till I can order my Big bertha of a kit.

Cheers muchly for the tips.

PS: Is anyone aware of a central review site for wine/beer kits? I had a scan on Google and couldn't find any.

[sparky Paul]

Thanks for the tips. I've gone for a BEAVERDALE CABERNET SAUVIGNON 1 Gallon as a trial. Depending on how taht goes I'm planning jumping over to the Chateua Neuf Du Pape clone the have (Chateaue du Roy?) since I have a major soft spot for that stuff. I'm pretty excited about giving the premium kits a shot now

The Beaverdale Cabernet Sauv is very good, I don't think you will be disappointed. Beaverdale Chateau du Roi is even better.

The trouble with 1 gallon kits is that it's all gone before it gets to mature, some of them don't even make the bottle here. 5 gallon kits are the way to go, and get another one straight on so there's some left to lay down after the second lot is ready.

[Manx Guy]

Hi!

I've made a couple of the Beaverdale 1 gal kits and I've picked out a fav...

The only thing stopping me buying the 5gal kit is bottling 30 bottles... lol

What other storage options are there?

I've seen vinotainers of various sizes... how long would wine last in these?

SWMBO & I like the young drinking dry white styles so the lot would be gone in three months (once ready)

I'd thought of bottling 6 at a time and sealing the remaining wine into 1gal glass demijohns under airlock, then bottling/ puting 5 litres into a small ish vinotainer or similar...

Is this viable?

Or should I just make the wine in 1 gal batches and drink, make & bottle it as I go?



Guy
Slainte!

[Horden Hillbilly]

Imo, you can't go wrong with any of the single grape variety wine kits which you don't add sugar to. Personally, I prefer a red wine from the Beaverdale or Vintners reserve range during the summer months, during the winter months I prefer a more "robust" red wine, I normally make up one of the Selection wine kits for the colder months of the year.

[ricardo]

Manx Guy......have a look here
http://www.baginboxonline.co.uk/products.html
I have used these with great success saves all that bottle washing !!
They had some very cheap cider bags/boxes on offer when I got mine.

[Manx Guy]

Many thanks Ricardo!

Did the wine stay fresh for long?
What sort of storage time have you experienced with this product?

Cheers!

[sparky Paul]

I've seen vinotainers of various sizes... how long would wine last in these?

SWMBO & I like the young drinking dry white styles so the lot would be gone in three months (once ready)

3 months would be no problem in a vinotainer, they are a great solution. You could decant a bottle full when needed, and chill for a few hours in the fridge.

I know someone who stores his wine in demijohns, and serves directly from them - he doesn't seem to have any problems... wine seems to be far more robust in bulk than beer. On one occasion, I even kept 5 gallons in a sealed fermenter and decanted periodically from it via a tap, cracking the lid to decant - I was worried it might oxidise, but the wine was fine all the way to the last.

[Manx Guy]

Hi Paul!

Awesome! Thanks! Vinotainer or one of those things that Ricardo recommended is the way to go I think!

The white wines I make are for drinking young and should be gone in 3 months (at the most! )

Later in the year I'm going to a make a gallon of Barolo as I've heard good things about the kit & I'm a fan of the style!
Its expensive stuff to buy! The whole Peidmont regions wines attract a premium now... Certainly compared with similar quality wines from the rest of Italy...

Slainte!