IMPORTANT: Ensure that your primary fermenter is large enough for the juice bladder with space for foaming during fermentation. The number of weeks required to make your wine is indicated on the front of your kit box.

VineCo Original Series Wine Kits

What’s in Your Kit

  • Wine Base — unlabelled large bag consisting of grape juice concentrate
  • Reserve (if included) — smaller bag
  • May contain Oak (granular, chips or cubes). May contain a combination of oak types.
  • Yeast Pack (up to 2 packages)
  • Bentonite — helps yeast activity and removes proteins
  • Sulphite/Sorbate Package — used to prevent oxidation and inhibit yeast growth
  • Fining Agents — Kieselsol and Chitosan — removes suspended particles, resulting in a clear stable wine

Specific Gravity (SG) by Stage

Wine Style Day 1 S.G. Day 14 S.G.
Moscato 1.065–1.075 <0.996
Light wines 1.049–1.057 <0.996
All others 1.080–1.100 <0.996

Equipment Needed

  • Primary Fermenter: A food-grade plastic container up to 30L (8 US gal)
  • Carboy: A glass or plastic carboy to hold 23L (6 US gal) fitted with a fermentation lock and stopper — see our 23 Litre Glass Carboy or 25 Litre Glass Carboy with Basket
  • Racking Tube & Tubing: Rigid, food-grade flexible tubing with a rigid plastic syphon rod and anti-sediment tip — see our Fermtech Auto Syphon 23L
  • Fermentation Lock & Stopper: Fits into the carboy and is half-filled with sulphite solution. Allows CO₂ to escape and prevents oxygen and spoilage organisms from entering the wine — see our Fermentation Airlock
  • Mixing Spoon: Food-grade plastic stirring utensil 70cm (28")
  • Solid Bung: Fits into carboys. Prevents oxygen and spoilage organisms from entering the wine once wine is fully degassed
  • Hydrometer: Used to check specific gravity at different stages — see our Wine & Beer Hydrometer with Glass Trial Jar
  • Wine Thief: Used to take samples from the primary and carboy
  • Bottle Filler: Automatically dispenses liquid when inserted into a bottle and stops liquid flow upon removal
  • Wine Bottles: 28–30 x 750ml (26 oz) bottles and corks

Step 1 — Day 1: Primary Fermentation

  1. Clean and sanitise all equipment to be used. Bring all kit components up to room temperature.
  2. Pour 2L (8 cups) of hot tap water into the bottom of the primary fermenter and stir in Bentonite. Mix well — it is normal for Bentonite to not fully dissolve in water.
  3. Pour contents of the juice base bag into the primary fermenter. Rinse out bag with water and add to the primary fermenter. If there are two bags, use the larger one now. The Reserve (small bag) is not added at this stage.
  4. Top primary fermenter up to 23L (6 US gallons) mark with good quality, cool drinking water.
  5. Stir well. Use a hydrometer to measure and record the Day 1 Specific Gravity (SG).
  6. If your kit contains Oak Chips and/or Granular Oak, add now and stir well. If your kit contains oak cubes, they will be added at a later stage.
  7. Sprinkle Dry Yeast on top of juice base (if your kit contains two packages of yeast, add both now).
  8. Place loose fitting lid, or primary lid with airlock filled halfway with sulphite solution on primary fermenter. The included Sulphite/Sorbate package is not used for this purpose. Visit winexpertathome.com for making a sulphite solution.
  9. Keep fermentation area warm (20–25°C or 68–77°F) for the entire winemaking process.

Step 2 — Day 14: Stabilising/Degassing

  1. Check chart for required SG reading. Measure the SG. If wine is not in range, check again in 48 hours. If in range, record the number.
  2. Using sanitised equipment, carefully syphon (rack) wine into a clean/sanitised carboy leaving sediment behind.
  3. Add contents of Sulphite/Sorbate package directly into the carboy of wine.
  4. Agitate wine using a sterilised stirring spoon. Vigorously stir wine, changing direction intermittently for 10 minutes. Alternatively, wine can be degassed using a drill with degassing attachment for 2–4 minutes at medium speed reversing direction every 30 seconds. See General Information for more detail on degassing.
  5. Stir in Kieselsol. If your kit contains two, add one package now. The other will be added at a later stage.
  6. Fit airlock filled halfway with sulphite solution into the neck of the carboy and leave for 24 hours.

Step 3 — Day 15: Clearing

  1. Stir the contents of the Reserve(s) into the carboy, if included.
  2. Stir in Chitosan(s).
  3. If your kit contains a second Kieselsol, stir in one hour after Chitosan addition.
  4. If your kit contains Oak Cubes, stir them in now.
  5. Replace airlock and leave wine to sit in a warm (20–25°C or 68–77°F), undisturbed area away from direct heat and light.
  6. After 5 days, give the carboy a twist (without lifting) to allow any sediment stuck to the walls of the carboy to drop.
  7. Continue clearing process according to the chart below. Topping up during the clearing process is not required. If choosing to top up, use a similar style wine. Water is not recommended.

Clearing Timetable

Wine Kit Polishing Rack Day Bottling Day
4 week 26 28
6 week 40 42
8 week 54 56

Step 4 — Days 26–54: Polishing Rack/Aging

  1. Wine should be perfectly clear. If not, leave wine for another 7–14 days to finish clearing.
  2. Carefully rack wine off of sediment (and oak cubes if present) into a clean and sanitised carboy fitted with a solid bung.
  3. Allow wine to sit undisturbed a minimum of 2 days to allow settling.
    • Optional: If aging your wine longer than 3 months, add 1.5g (1/4 tsp) of potassium metabisulphite to the wine at this time to help preserve flavour and colour.
    • If filtering wine, do so at this stage. NEVER FILTER CLOUDY WINE.

Step 5 — Bottling (Clear Wine Only)

  1. Carefully syphon your wine into clean and sanitised bottles.
  2. Cork bottles and leave upright for 3–5 days allowing cork to expand. Invert or store on side to keep cork moist. Store wine at 11°C to 18°C or 52°F to 65°F. If choosing to carbonate wine, top up with a similar style wine and fit with a solid stopper. Bottle aging is the preferred method.

General Information

  • Clean and sanitise ALL equipment (bottles, hoses, primary fermenter, carboy, stirring spoon, etc.). Cleaning and sanitising is a two-step process:
    • Cleaning: A winemaking cleaner is required (not included). Rinse thoroughly after use.
    • Sanitising: Use a metabisulphite solution (not included). Rinse thoroughly after use. The Sulphite/Sorbate package is NOT for this use. For instructions to make a sulphite solution, visit winexpertathome.com.
  • When taking Day 1 specific gravity (SG) reading with a hydrometer, ensure that primary fermenter contents are well stirred. Take the SG reading immediately after stirring. Juice and water naturally want to separate and the juice base will sink to the bottom. This will not affect the fermentation but will skew the Day 1 reading. For hydrometer tips, visit winexpertathome.com.
  • To ensure your wine is degassed:
    • Taste your wine. Remove a small sample from the carboy after degassing. If the wine is gritty on the tongue, repeat the degassing step. At this stage it will not taste as it will at bottling.
    • Fill a test jar halfway with degassed wine and give it a good shake with your hand covering the opening. If there is a big pop, then repeat the degassing step. If the popping sound is small then the wine is sufficiently degassed.

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