Now that your wine has completed secondary fermentation, let's degas the wine and add the rest of the additives that are found in your wine kit.

1. Start by cleaning and sanitizing the following pieces of equipment: Plastic Paddle or Spoon or drill mounted stirrer, measuring cup and kitchen spoon.
2. Before adding any of the other ingredients, degas the wine by stirring the wine vigorously for 2 full minutes by hand or use your drill mounted stirrer for 30-60 seconds. When finished, you should have a lot of foam on top of the wine. If you don't, you did not stir it hard enough. (This is where the drill-mounted stirrer really comes in handy!)
3. Dissolve contents of package #2 (potassium metabisulphite) and package #3 (potassium sorbate) in 1/2 cup of cool water. Add to carboy and stir very vigorously for another 2 full minutes by hand or 30-60 seconds with your drill-mounted stirrer to disperse the stabilizers and drive off CO2. Once again, when finished, you should have a lot of foam on top of the wine.
4. IF YOUR KIT CONTAINS A SMALLER FOIL BAG (Winexpert refers to it as an F-Pack), you add it now.
5. To ensure sufficient room in your carboy for the contents of the pack, remove two cups of wine. Reserve this to top up carboy later.
6. Shake the foil bag, carefully remove the cap, and pour contents into the carboy.
7. Shake contents of package #4 (chitosan or isinglass). Carefully cut open the corner of pouch and pour contents into carboy. Stir vigorously for another 2 full minutes by hand or 30-60 seconds with your drill-mounted stirrer. When your have finished stirring, you should have a lot of foam on top of the wine, again, and your gravity will now read between 0.998 and 1.007 depending on the style of the kit. (Note: your wine may not clear if this stirring is skipped and may have a “fizzy” and/or “yeasty” taste when bottled).
8. Top up carboy to within 3 inches of the top of your carboy with the reserved wine from the F-Pack addition, if available and up to 1 quart of cool water. If you need more liquid, use a similar wine. Ensure airlock is filled halfway with sulfite solution and reattach bung and airlock. Allow your wine to clear completely before bottling!
9. Most Vintner’s Reserves and Island Mist wine kits will be clear and ready to bottle after 7 days; whereas, most Selections will need 3-4 weeks to clear and a second racking as specified in the instructions included in these kits.
10. When you perform the second racking, it is easiest to rack into a second carboy, but if you are just getting started, you may not have an extra carboy. In this case, rack your wine to your clean and sanitized bucket. Then, clean and sanitize your carboy and drain the bucket back into the carboy. You should be able to perform this racking in 15-30 minutes and this limited exposure to oxygen will not adversely affect your wine.
11. When topping off with a similar wine, you can simply use a red wine for any red wine and a white wine for any white wine. You will not be adding enough of a different wine to affect the taste of your wine kit.