First batch

Chris, Welcome and good-luck. I don't do wine kits, but there are many that do, and I'm sure if you have any questions, just ask. Tip - this hobby can become addicting. ;o) Darlene Wisconsin

My tip: don't worry to follow the directions to the exact day..you can stretch out the processes (primary, racking to secondary etc.) by days and days and days. Relax and take your time for the wine is very forgiving.

Congrats On Your First Batch!

Karl B. Saint Charles County, MO

Welcome! My main suggestion would be to follow everything in the instructions except the timing. Use the hydrometer to determine when to do things. If you have any questions about this, ask.

On timing, do not do anything sooner than they say but if you take more time, it will not hurt and may help. (This is true of everything except time in the primary.)

Don't over do the testing. Some kits suggest that you test every day. This is way too much handling. Once it goes in the secondary, if the airlock is bubbling, leave it alone. It is doing fine.

Relax and enjoy. It will come out fine.

Ray

Er, golly.I guess I did it backwards. I started my first batch a few hours ago, and THEN found this newsgroup. I have no idea what a wine kit is,

"Primary?" "Secondary?" Gods damned if I know what that means.

Chris - Check out the on-line winemaking sites listed below. A lot of questions are answered at these sites. All are very good. BTW, you may be able to find Norton grapes at Davenport Orchard and Vineyard in Eudora, Kansas next summer. Get in touch with Greg Shipe...the owner.

Bill Frazier Olathe, Kansas USA

There is no real backward. I assume you had some advise for instructions from some source. Ask questions. They will get answered. Even the basic ones. A primary is the container you start your fermentation in. It is usually a food grade plastic bucket about twice the volume of the wine you are making. It is usually not sealed but is covered to keep out bugs and other undesirables. This brings us to the secondary with is usually a large glass jug or carboy that can be tightly sealed to keep air out. You move your fermenting wine from the primary to the secondary after the violent part of fermentation has finished and, if you are using fruit, the fruit is no longer floating. You keep it in the secondary under an airlock, an airtight seal, until fermentation is finished.

A wine kit is a kit of ingredients, not hardware, used in making a certain type of wine. You can buy a Riesling or Gewürztraminer, or a Merlot or any of dozens if not hundreds of styles of wines. The better (more expensive, $60 plus) kits can be quite good. I personally think the white kits are better than the reds but that is my opinion. Cheaper kits are mediocre. There really is a rough relationship between what you pay and what you get here. They give you very detailed instructions and are a good way for a beginner to get started or for an advanced winemaker to make wines when he has no access to the type of fruit required.

Enjoy the hobby.

Ray