First wine kit

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jmichaeldesign

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I'm making some Vintners Reserve Sauv Blanc.

Following the instructions there doesn't seem to be anything sanitizing the must.

I have campden tablets for preparing brewing water, and I know I can sanitize the must this way.

I have the bentonite, concentrate and water all mixed, haven't pitched the yeast yet.

Should I crush up some campden tablets and sanitize it, or just follow the directions and pitch the yeast?

Also the instructions say it should start at 1.080 - 1.097 and its at 1.110 any worries here? I'm at the full 6 gallons and don't want to push the limits of my 6.5 gallon carboy any farther.

I know homebrew kits instructions get oversimplified for the beginner this is my first wine but I've been brewing for 7 years now so I know there's probably some things left out in the kit instructions.

Thanks.
 
Just follow the directions! The must is already sanitized. It's condensed and packaged in that container with the top that demons invented. (If you can get the top off of that juice package, without it exploding on yourself, you're probably a great winemaker. :D) And no, don't ask because I do NOT want to talk about it! :p

Anyway, the juice is fine "as is" and the directions give you a very nice end product, so try it. A 6.5 gallon carboy is fine, although I use a bucket for primary. Wines don't foam up much.

Oh, and don't worry about the OG. You'll top up at the end, after degassing, and that water that you add then will "make up" the difference for the OG now. It'll still work out exactly right. You need a 6 gallon carboy (not 6.5 gallons) for that part.
 
Awesome. Thanks so much for the quick response. The top is evil. I pulled on it for a few minutes then grabbed the closest thing I could find. A can opener. I managed to get the lip of the cap under the rotating blade and levered it off.
 
No need to sanitize the must of kit wines. It's my understanding that they come with pasteurized juice. That's how they can sit on the self for months or years and not spoil. If I'm not mistaken that's also why you don't get malolactic (sp?) fermentation in kit wines, but I might be way off on that.

Just follow the instructions and all should go well.

As far as the gravity goes, somebody else will need to chime in. What temp are you measuring at?
 
Also the instructions say it should start at 1.080 - 1.097 and its at 1.110 any worries here? I'm at the full 6 gallons and don't want to push the limits of my 6.5 gallon carboy any farther.

Make sure you sit the heck out of your must after adding teh water and bentonite. The smaller wine kits have a thicker concentrate. They can take a some effort to mix in with the water you added to get to the 6 gallons. Also are you sure you are 6 gallons? The lines on the side of the buckets have been known to be off. A SG of 1.110 is going to put you at about 14-15% ABV if it ferments dry. That's pretty high IMO for a sauv blanc.
 
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