AUSTRALIAN BLEND WINE KITS - INSTRUCTIONS
Australian Blend wine kits are made from pure grape juice just as the real thing. The wine yeast and nutrient used in our kits are fruits of many years of development and will help preserve the original qualities of the grape throughout our fast fermentation. The result is a truly amazing wine in the style of the great Australian vineyards. All raw materials used to make your wine kit are of the highest possible quality, we have simply made no compromises. Good luck with your first real quality home made wine! Australian Blend wine kits are available in 4 day, 7 day and 3 week versions.
THE NECESSARY STUFF
WHAT'S GOOD TO HAVE
It is extremely important to clean and sterilize all equipment properly. Use a good homebrew cleaner/sterilizer for best result. An extra 33 litre fermenter (bucket) is good to have when racking off. A hydrometer is the main instrument you need for all measurements - find out when fermentation is over, calculate alcohol, adjust sweetness etc. The hydrometer is also very good to have if you make your own beer. Use good wine corks for your bottles, or if you wish - use swing top bottles. When corking, a twin lever corker is best. That will save you a lot of hard work and minimize the risk of damaging the corks.
1. START
1. Empty all grape juice into your fermenter and top up with lukewarm water (20-30C) to 23 litres total volume.
2. Add sachet no.1 (Wine Yeast) (for 4-day and 7-day kits, this is Wine Yeast/Nutrient).
3. Mix well, then mount the airlock half filled with water. Place somewhere safe in case of leaks, frothing over etc.
4. Fermentation should start within 24 hours normally. You will then notice foam on the surface and bubbles coming out of your airlock.
2. FERMENTATION
Fermentation works best in room temperature, or above (21-27 C). Leave to ferment until finished, which normally is when there is no more foam on surface and no more bubbles coming through the airlock. Typical fermentation times are:
- Australian Blend 4-Day wine kit: 2 days (3 days from start)
- Australian Blend 7-Day wine kit: 5 days (6 days from start)
- Australian Blend 3-Week wine kit: approximately 14 days
3. STABILIZING AND FINING
5. First check the residual sweetness. The hydrometer should read below 1000 and wine should be dry in taste. If in any doubt, do NOT continue here. Instead then wait a few days more and re-check. Contact your specialist if you need advice.
6. Rack off your wine with the syphon into another fermenter, make sure to discard most of the sediment.
7. Add sachet no.2 (Stabilizer) and sachet no.3 (Finings A). Shake or stir thoroughly to make sure all CO2 pressure is removed. Repeat a few times.
8. Wait at least 3 hours (up to one day is fine here), then add sachet no.4 (Finings B).
9. Shake or stir moderately for 10-15 seconds, then leave wine to clear at table height for racking off later.
10. Your wine should be clear after 24-48 hours normally, but in difficult cases it may take longer.
3. RACKING OFF AND BOTTLING
11. Rack off to another fermenter, this time making sure to discard all the sediment.
12. Add sachet/sachets containing extract (applies to some types only).
13. Shake or stir thoroughly to make sure all remaining CO2 is removed, then it is time to bottle your wine. If you want to make absolutely sure there is no CO2 in the bottles (which would give you a slightly fizzy wine), leave for 24 hours before bottling.
14. Your wine is now ready to drink and it will improve further if left for a few weeks.
Please note: The information in these instructions are not owned by Brew2Bottle, and are obtained from suppliers of the kits.