Secret for a great Cabernet

I've been making wine for several years - I use high-end kits ($Can 120 range), age the wine for reasonable periods (like a year or more) etc. So the wine is "decent" . . . . but the other day I did a blind taste test with friends. I really don't think I could ever make anything that matches the Napa Valley Cabernet (Cupcake) that someone included in the 4 we tasted. Dry, mellow, beautiful oak aroma . . .
Question: does anyone have a secret recipe for making a great Cabernet?

Put a mediocre Cabernet in a blender for 30 seconds...


Seriously.

Pinzelmeister,
You'll need to start making wine with fresh grapes, without trying to start a "what is better" debate, nor am I trying to disrespect the Kit wine makers, everything has its place, but you won't be able to make a kit wine that can compare to wine made from premium fresh grapes.
I make a Cabernet that is very good, I currently have 30 gallons bulk aging in barrels and demijohns waiting for their turn in the barrels.
I source most of my grapes from Washington state and California.
If you decide to go with Californian grapes, don't get the central valley grapes, I will usually go with Lanza Vineyards, they have great grapes at decent prices.
Remember, you can't make great wine with mediocre grapes, great wine starts with great grapes.
Here is a brief overview:
Once you destem and crush, the fun begins, this is where you can start to craft that wine into a work of art!
There are so many choices that you can make that will effect the final product, I start by taking a sample of the juice that I will test for PH, TA, after this I'll add meta to the crushed grapes to suppress wild yeast resident on the grape skins.
I add an enzyme that is formulated to improve color stability and enhance mouthfeel in red wines. (we can talk about that more if you'd like)
After 24 hrs, I pitch the selected yeast that I've hydrated with Go-Ferm. The yeast that you choose has such an important impact on the wine, for example, I used a traditional Bordeaux yeast (BDX) on one 15 gallon batch, and RP-15 on the other, the traditional BDX is shaping up to be just that, an amazing traditional Cabernet, the 15 gallons fermented on RP-15 blew me away, it is beyond amazing, very fruit forward, an amazing wine even at 4 months, I've done a few barrel tasting with friends and they were blown away as well, the first thing they said was "this is dangerous"...lol...I've tasted another cab fermented on RP-15 after it had aged a year, it was great, I cannot wait! unfortunately, mine will age for a year and a half to 2 yrs; the point of that was to show you that you can sculpt the wine to a certain extent.
Back to the wine making -
Make sure that you have yeast nutrients such as Fermaid K, a healthy fermentation can require nutrients, the Scott Labs fermentation handbook will tell you how nutrient dependent the yeast is.
When fermentation is complete (I try to ferment to 0.90) press the grapes and remove from gross lees after 24 hrs, rack to demijohn and hydrate and pitch Malolactic bacteria, malolactic fermentation is so important to red wines.
When MLF is complete, rack to demijohn or barrel and stabilize with meta. If no barrel is available add oak chips to the fermenter, and again to the demijohn.
Keep wine topped up, and test SO2 every 2 months, the SO2 levels can be depleted or bound up fast which can result in the wine spoiling.

Again, this was more of an overview, I'd be happy to get into it, more in depth.
I hope that this helps.

Cupcake has quite a bit of sugar in it, perhaps that's the missing piece for your palette?

Although I've never tried any of the Cupcake Vineyard wines, It cannot have any sugar added to it, Chaptalization is prohibited in in California.

Chap happens all the time in CA whether it's legal or not, but Cupcake most likely stunts ferment near the desired residual sugars, sterile filters and adds back concentrate to adjust to the desired formula.

To the home winemaker, it's more simple to just use good old fashioned beet sugar to a sterile wine.

Although I'm sure that some vineyards get away with adding sugar, with all of the scrutiny wineries have come under lately due to everything from intentional mislabeled wine to faked wines, I'd fine it hard to believe that many wineries would risk getting caught, the fines alone can put a winery into bankruptcy; but then again maybe I'm too naive about it.
I agree for the home winemaker, back sweetening a wine is simple enough.

I hate to say it, but kits and purchased grapes will never be the same quality as a top tier commercial wine. Naturally, the grapes sold off, which can be sold in bulk or as juice, are not going to be the very best available- vineyards are going to use their best in their own product. Even contracted vineyards (similar to hop farms) that don't make their own wine will sell the best to their loyal customers, not some small homebrewer or shop. At the price of a wine kit, they can't afford to buy the best grapes.

That said, I have had some (considering the cost) very very good homemade wines, even kit ones. You have to remember, you are comparing a $6 bottle you are making to a wine where the winery's cost is significantly higher than that. So, I figure a homemade wine should be comparable to a $20 or $30 retail cost wine- and I believe mine to be at least that good in general. But the very best kit you can, process it gently, and age it extensively (for reds).

Unless you have a friend at a vineyard, and want to spend a fortune on winemaking equipment (a press alone is a major investment), just enjoy the "table wine" you make, and if you want something spectacular, go commercial. Of course, you can always do non-grape homemade wines, but that's a whole other subject.

I am going to have to respectfully disagree with you.

I hate to say it, but kits and purchased grapes will never be the same quality as a top tier commercial wine.

Click to expand...

I agree that kits will never make the grade, but you can absolutely make a great wine that is as good as or better than a $20-$30 bottle of wine.

As a member of a wine club that has established a great working relationship with one of the largest distributors of grapes on the east coast, they regularly purchase premium grapes that can cost well over $100 per lug, but I've seen some spend upwards of $200 per lug to source the best available, this club purchases several tons of grapes each season and gets info direct from several vineyards, making the selection a very educated process.

I've enjoyed some of this wine on a few occasions, and I will tell you that most times it is far better than many commercial wine, not the $6 bottles either.
I'd put a few of my wines up against a few commercial wines, but I don't make wine to put into competitions, it is a passion, I enjoy the process, and I really like when friends and family enjoy our wine.

Those of us that are serious about wine making have purchased motorized crusher destemers, presses or bladder presses, enough testing devices or lab equipment to be able to make balanced wines, like any hobby, there are going to be expenses, it is all a matter of how much do you want to invest, be it time, money, or trying to help others.

I am very fortunate to be part of this wine club, which includes some of the best wine makers that I've had the pleasure of learning from, these guys are constantly pushing the envelope, using products, techniques, and equipment used in commercial wineries, they are always ready to learn and share, so to say that "purchased grapes will never be the same quality as a top tier commercial wine." is far from accurate, no disrespect intended.

I lived in Italy when I was younger, I helped my buddy on his fathers vineyard in Tuscany, harvesting grapes and helping to make the wine, I am fortunate to have been exposed to wine from an early age.

There is so much that goes into making a great wine, the most important is the grape quality, but that is just the start.

Sorry for the rant

Both my wild blueberry, and my wild blueberrie/table grape blend wines have been said to taste as good as a high end Cab. I really can't say if they do as I don't buy "real" grape wines of the high end varity!
Maybe try adding a few wild blueberries to your cab must to bost flavor? I have no clue if it will work, but more fruit per galleon usually helps with flavor. The blueberries will at least add some complexity.


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Cupcake: it really seemed to be the oak - the aroma. That hit me immediately in the blind taste test. Then smooth and mellow, and a tiny bit of astringent aftertaste (in a positive way). Just a really good wine, quite dry etc. Anyway . . . right, my homemade wine (from kits . . . I live in the frozen North) is good, beats some commercial wines, may never match the best Napa Valley wine . . . no big deal.