Poor results

This kit turned out great for me. I think you are just being over anxious.

When did you add the Bentonite? From your description above it would appear that you have added it at the start of the fermentation process, is that correct?

Yes, that is what the instructions provided by BrewKing says. Dissolve the betonite in two litres of water, then pour the juice into the betonite solution, stir, top to 23 litres, then add the yeast.

Let the newsgroup scroll proclaim that "Willie" scribed upon its pages in news:D27Ab.51483$ snipped-for-privacy@weber.videotron.net:

If you added it at the start of fermentation, that's way too early. Add it when SG is below 1.00, and allow it to clear.

with wine kits, (Brew King, I can't speak for all brands) it is correct to add the bentonite at the beginning.

If it's not crystal clear and a bit cloudy, the cloudy bit is yeast that hasn't yet settled & cleared. Personally, I don't find that yeast tastes particularily good! A young wine can start to taste drinkable after 2 months.. good after 6 and great after 12. :) Patience is a virtue in winemaking!

LG

Some people add it at the beginning, claiming that it will help clearing, and that the bentonine will ride like comets on the CO2 coming off the bottom from the primary fermentation process. It's not how I do it, but it's not totally wrong either. Maybe it helps if you are in a super big rush, since the clearing will be starting from day one, not later! :) This must be a kit thing. Why do people insist on demanding kits where you rush things in a few short weeks?! If people want to rush, they should get themselves a kit of Riesling or Gwertz that has half of chance of tasting OK after 2 months. And why add bentonite to a red at all? Throw out the kit instructions and buy some patience, or maybe some Claro K-C.

LG

Is the bentonite problem the reason of the poor results, even if the maximum potential has been obtained: SG: 0,992 ?

The manufacturer's instructions are at

Any Idea where I can find better instructions for that kit?

If I read your post correctly. This wine is still in the carboy and only 24 days from the beginning of fermentation. Don't you think you're jumping the gun a bit? These kits don't even go to the bottle for 6-8 weeks.

You will not find better instructions for the kit per se! The manufacturers instructions work absolutely perfectly every time. However with a little experience it is quite possible to vary these and change some of the intended wines attributes. I personally normally use a yeast of my own selection and I sometimes adjust the starting SG a little. I rarely, if ever, use the finings and prefer this to be achieved naturally during the bulk aging process. I don't use the potassium Sorbate but I do adjust the SO2 for its period of bulk aging. However having said all that if you follow the kits instructions to the letter you will produce a wine which will rank very much at the top end of quality wine kits. You have only to actually indulge in a little reading of this NG to find other opinions than mine of the subject of kit wines. You must also appreciate the any kit wine has been specifically researched and "designed" to produce the same result every time for a whole variety of abilities of wine makers. It is unwise when beginning a new type to make radical changes without previous experience. My own experience in wine make only goes back about 30 years and I still make blunders occasionally and wonder what I did wrong.

I am extremely surprised about your comments with regard to wateriness and lack of taste. I haven't made a Selection Cab/Merlot but I have made, over the last couple of years, well over a dozen different Selection kits from the Selection, Selection International and Limited Edition and Selection Estate, -- all Red wines. While I find that they still have some short comings when compared to commercially produced red wines I cannot in any way attribute the qualities of taste and flavour of which you complain. I can only suggest that you are sampling the wine at a most vulnerable moment. It has just been racked , degassed(?), fined (?) and generally knocked about a bit. Surprisingly the old wives tales of "bruising" and "bottleshock" aren't old wives tales! I would suggest that you rack to your bulk aging carboy, adjust the SO2 , top up to the neck, cap with a fermentation lock and let it sit and rest for 6 months in a dark storage area.

PS. I don't own or have any shares in Brew King!!!!!!!!!!!

I've never made anything from a kit, so I would say follow the instructions that came with the kit. That said I had never before heard of bentonite being used at the beginning of a fermentation, although I can see that many people think it is ok to do so. *shrug* I don't use bentonite for fining/clearing so I don't really know much about it, the fining agents I used are added at the end, which is why I asked. I will add that red wines take a while to reach full potential and that you shouldn't sample them too soon, so I would let it age for a while, the instructions provided with the kit should have a recommendation as to how long (most likely a few months). Sample it once a suitable time has passed and make any judgements about quality then. Ken

Absolutly, I was expecting a dark color and strong tanin taste at this time. But I found the opposite, a light red with no taste. I just wanted to know if the results I have were normal or not at this step. It is my very first batch.