Wine Kit Frustrations! Help!

[brianh0669]

So I started making kit wines about 12 years ago. I've tried lower quality and higher quality kits and always have the same results. There is always a definitive salty taste to the wine no matter how long I let it bulk age or bottle age. Degassing isn't the problem and when tasting throughout the process I don't notice it until after the step of degassing and adding the metabisulfite and sorbate. I notice it very prominently in the dry wines but don't notice it at all in the wines with the fruit concentration additions. Guessing the added sugars and flavoring are enough to overpower it.

Is it possible that these additions are a bit too much and could be reduced with no ill effects to the storage of the wine? I also don't have this issue when I make my own fruit wine and welches concentrate wines so I know it has to be one of these additions.

Anyone else notice this and have a solution? I have brought this up in other forums over the years but really haven't gotten much of a response. I took a short time off from making dry kits and stuck to fruit kits and beer for the last several years. Made a couple dry kits again and immediately noticed the tell-tale salty taste. My wife notices it too. One kit I bottled within 3 months of starting and the other I let bulk age for 4 months before bottling. They were the cheap vino italiano kits but that aside, even the higher end kits I've made in the past have had the same issue.

Thanks again for any and all information

 

[BargainFittings]

Are you using sodium metabisulfite?

What sort of water are you using to make the kit? Perhaps your water has high sodium levels to begin with.

 

[brianh0669]

Are you using sodium metabisulfite?

What sort of water are you using to make the kit? Perhaps your water has high sodium levels to begin with.

I believe most of the kits have been sodium metabisulfite but cannot be sure. As for the water, I have used various bottled water as well as tap and all have the same result. I do have potassium metabisulfite. Would you recommend trying that in place of what comes with the kit?

 

[phug]

try the potassium meta. The sodium metabisulphite definitely will increase the sodium levels in your finished product.

 

[novalou]

I'll concur too using potassium metabisulfite.

Make you use spring water or water that has been filtered through reverse osmosis. If you are using softened well water, there is dissolved salt there too.


Sent from my iPhone using Home Brew

 

[brianh0669]

Thanks guys. Think I'll throw out their sodium metubi and use my potassium metabi. See how it turns out. I only notice it it the non fruit kit wines. Never have it in anything I make from scratch.