FAQ

All of our craft wine kits come with easy to follow instructions. Plus, our knowledgable staff are here to help you along the way if you have any other questions. Advice is free! Lost your instructions?

Click here for Vineco instructions

Click here for Winexpert instructions

And to make it even easier, we can make your wine, beer or cider kit for you in our In Store Winery (hyperlink to page). You do not need an appointment to visit the store, purchase your wine, or start the winemaking process. We will book a bottling appointment for you to come back when the wine is ready to be bottled. The bottling process takes 20-30 minutes.

Yes – we believe it is better! And about 1/3 of the cost.

Each craft wine kit makes 23L of wine – this would fill approximately 30 750ml bottles of wine. The only exception is our dessert wine kits which make 11.5L of wine. This would fill approximately 15 750ml bottles or 30 375ml bottles.

If you are making your wine kit at home you will need an equipment starter kit, as well as the wine kit. The equipment starter kit is approximately $110 if you buy a wine kit at the same time. Wine kits range from $85-$210. Winecraft is also able to make your wine in our In-Store Winery (can this be a link to that page?). The wine processing fee is $55. Bottles, corks, labels and shrink caps are extra. All prices are subject to change.

We also make craft beer and cider kits in our In-Store Winery (add hyperlink?). These products can be carbonated naturally in the bottle with a sugar slurry added at bottling time or carbonated artificially with C02 at our Prince of Wales location. These kits can also be made at home for those that enjoy making their own craft brew.

We recommend aging your wine to enhance its flavour and aroma. Each wine has its own characteristics, and some will require longer aging than others. Generally, we recommend aging a red wine kit for 3-12 months and a white wine kit for 2-4 months. Our sweet and fruity wine kits are ready after 1-2 weeks.

Provided you have followed all instructions carefully, your wine will be quite dry after fermentation is complete. Some wine kits come with additional juice concentrate or a flavour pack (in our Mist kits). A benefit of craft wine kits is that you can customize how sweet or a dry a wine tastes. Should you prefer a sweeter wine, you may add a wine conditioner as per the instructions listed on the bottle. Take caution not to over-sweeten. As well, you can customize the level of oak in any wine kit to your preference.

Water is not quite as critical as many people think. In fact, if your water is fit to drink, it is usually just fine for winemaking. However, if your water has a lot of hardness or a high mineral content, especially iron, it could lead to permanent haze or off flavours. Also, if your house is equipped with a salt-exchange water softener, that water can’t be used for winemaking. If you’re in doubt, go ahead and use bottled water to make your wine: you’ll appreciate the difference.

It is absolutely essential that all equipment and bottles be clean and sterilized before use. We have various options for your sterilizing needs. Failure to properly sterilize may result in an unsuccessful wine.

Your Wine Kit has been designed to ferment between 20-25 degrees Celsius (70-77 degrees Fahrenheit). Temperatures above 30 degrees Celsius (85 degrees Fahrenheit) will inactivate the yeast while temperatures below 20 degrees Celsius (70 degrees Fahrenheit) will prolong the time required to make the wine. The correct fermentation temperature can be assured with the help of a heating pad or heat belt on your pail or carboy. The pad or belt should be set on low and the temperature of the wine carefully monitored.

The purpose of the fermentation lock is to prevent oxygen and spoilage organisms from entering the wine while at the same time permitting the escape of carbon dioxide gas. The lock should be half filled with water or a sulphite solution and refitted to the carboy after each operation.

Your wine should be clear and ready to bottle as per the instructions. Should the wine not be clear at this time, separate the wine from the sediment by syphoning to a clean carboy and allow additional time. Always refit the fermentation lock. Filtering is not the cure for a cloudy wine however filtration will assure perfect clarity on a clear wine.