The Wine Maker's Toy Store™
Bringing family and friends together...One sip at a time!
Welcome to Pressing News, the monthly newsletter
published by Fine Vine Wines, LLC, designed exclusively to assist
the home vintner in the pursuit of their hobby!
THIS MONTH ON THE VINE!
- Welcome
- Customer Referral Program
- Customer Appreciation Program - FVW Growers Club
- Winexpert Limited Edition 2006 and RJ Spagnols RQ 2006
- Home Wine Making Awards
- Online Discussion Forum
- Featured Article - Get the Kids Involved with Root Beer!
- Toy of the Month
- New Products
- Call Us!
- Wine of the Month
- Customer Feedback
- Unsubscribe
WELCOME
I would like to take this opportunity to welcome you to Fine Vine
Wines, LLC, "The Wine Maker's Toy Store". Whether you
need products or just need information, we are here to serve
you. I want to extend my thanks again for making The Wine Maker's
Toy Store your home for your wine making and beer brewing needs.
It continues to be my hope is that everytime you visit our web
site or retail store, you find something of value.
As a reminder, we continue to add products and content to the web site; therefore, if you have any special requests, please let us know. We like to hear what you have to say about our site, our products and/or our customer service, good or bad. Please send your comments and/or suggestions to winemaster@finevinewines.com.
CUSTOMER REFFERAL PROGRAM
In case you missed it, we have a customer referral
program that provides additional discounts to registered
users. We will give you a coupon worth 10% of the first order
placed by any person that you refer to our web site. The stipulations
are as follows:
- You must be a registered user of finevinewines.com,
- The person placing the order must register and provide your name in the appropriate field on the registration screen, and
- The discount is only good for future orders with finevinewines.com and is not redeemable for cash.
That's all you have to do to get another discount from finevinewines.com.
CUSTOMER APPRECIATION PROGRAM - FVW GROWERS CLUB
Please check out our FVW Growers Club. You can get all of the details on our web site, but the bottom line is we want to buy your loyalty! Once you spend $500 with us, you get a 5% discount on everything you buy from us. Find out more on the web site.
WINEXPERT LIMITED EDITION 2006 AND RJ SPAGNOLS RESTRICTED QUANTITIES 2006
Winexpert and RJ Spagnols will release their Limited Edition and Restricted Quantity kits during the first of October and hopefully in time for the next newsletter. At this time, we do not know which varietals will be included in these special releases, but if history is any indication, the kits will be outstanding. The kits over the last several years have featured several Pinot Noirs, a Petit Verdot, a French Merlot and a Viognier. These kits are produced on a limited basis and must be pre-ordered if you want to assure yourself of receiving these kits.
As with prior years, we will have a special promotion when you purchase all of the kits in either series. Although, we won't tell what our special promotion is this month; however, we will tell you that we think it is one of our best promotions, ever. Be sure to watch the web site and the newsletter to see what we have up our sleeve!
HOME WINE MAKING AWARDS
Several of our customers have enjoyed the satisfaction
of winning a medal for one of their home made wines. Some of
the medal winning wines were from fresh ingredients and others
were made from a wine kit. At The Wine Maker's Toy Store we would
like to recognize our winners and encourage more of you to enter
your wines into competition.
We have started building
a web page that will be devoted to our medal winners. On this page, we will
list our medal winners and the medals they have received. In
addition, we will publish a list of the recognized wine
competitions in the United States.
In addition, Winexpert has a program that will
give you a free wine kit if you win a medal with one of their
wine kits in the Annual WineMaker Magazine or HWBTA competitions. We would
like to improve that offer by giving you a $25 gift certificate
for any wine for which you win a medal in a recognized public
competition. In order to receive this gift certificate for your
medal winning wine, you must list Fine Vine Wines as your sponsor/retailer
on the entry form. When you win, send us a copy of the entry
form and the list of the winners which shows your name and the
medal you received. We will then issue you a $25 gift certificate.
If you have any questions about entering a wine
into competition, please contact us. Watch the web site for more
information. Good luck and you may be surprised with your results.
FORUM
When you have a question or just want to learn more about wine making, don't forget our forum! We
have 226 registered users, including some extremely knowledgable
wine makers with loads of valuable information and willing to assist you in your wine making needs. As of the printing of this newsletter, we have
over 7,500 posts. Whether you are an expert or a novice, it
is an excellent place to ask questions, exchange ideas and meet
other home wine makers.
If you haven't logged into the forum, try it sometime. I think you will find it most informative and enjoyable, as well as, a great place to meet fellow wine makers.
FEATURED
ARTICLE - GET THE KIDS INVOLVED WITH ROOT BEER!
Since I started making wine early this year, my kids have been fascinated with the wine making process. They often ask to help and I always oblige. My 9-year-old daughter especially likes corking, labeling and putting on the shrink caps. Sadly, this is all the enjoyment that she gets out of wine making (dad will not let her taste).
Several weeks ago, I discovered a way to let the whole family enjoy creating and drinking their own homemade beverages: root beer. That’s right, the all-American soft drink. The process is simple, inexpensive, and loads of fun. And, we were able to make gallons of the best quality root beer for only pennies a bottle.
The recipe that we used is fairly simple: Water, sugar, yeast, and root beer extract (purchased from Fine Vine Wines). If you would like to make root beer from scratch, try the Internet. There are dozens and dozens of recipes out there. The original root beer formula created by Charles Hires was made from 25 herbs, berries, and roots. Many of the ingredients used in root beer are very difficult to locate and can be expensive. Some are so hard to find you would be climbing mountains in Calcutta to locate some of them. For example, Sassafras root, a main ingredient in root beer, is banned in the United States because it contains carcinogens that are at the very least harmful to lab rats. Modern root beer uses artificial flavors. Needless to say, the extract was an easy decision for me.
To get started with making your own root beer using extract, you will need the following:
- Primary fermentation bucket with spigot (for mixing and bottling) - If you are going to use your wine primary fermentation bucket (as I did), you may want to consider something. Root beer WILL leave a strong smell behind when you are done with the primary. I did not notice the taste being transferred to my next batch of wine, but more delicate tastes may detect it. If you don’t want to chance it, a dedicated bucket may be in order. Use your own judgment here.
- Long mixing spoon – The same spoon you use to mix your wine must.
- Sugar – Most would recommend using ordinary cane sugar. The recipe calls for eight cups. The beauty of this is that you control the sweetness. I have yet to experiment with using brown sugar or artificial sweeteners. However, I have read that these are acceptable substitutes.
- Yeast – Carbonation is created naturally in root beer just as it is in home brewed beer. Some of you are fortunate enough to have a forced carbonation system. In that case, skip the yeast. But if you ask me, using yeast to create carbonation is half the fun of making your own root beer. Most would recommend Champaign yeast for its mild flavor and smooth carbonation. My first batch of root beer was made with ale yeast. Somewhere I read that ale yeast dies when it reaches a certain pressure in the bottle. I can honestly tell you, the pressure at which ale yeast dies is far above the maximum pressure tolerated by my glass beer bottles. Ale yeast will also give you a slightly yeasty flavor. Despite this, I still prefer ale yeast because it has afforded me overall better success than Champaign yeast.
- Water – From 1 to 4 gallons of filtered or spring water depending on how much soda you want to make. Before jumping in and making 4 gallons, make sure you have room in your refrigerator for it. Your root beer will NEED to be refrigerated whether you are ready to drink it or not.
- Soda Extract – Fine Vine Wines carries a variety of soda flavors to try. Along with root beer, George carries Cola, Cream Soda, Ginger Ale, and Birch Beer. In case you’re wondering, birch beer and sarsaparilla are both forms of root beer. I intend to try them all.
- Soda bottles – Most would recommend using used plastic soda bottles to store your root beer. The advantages are that they are cheep and safe for kids to handle. I made the small investment of glass bottles and a bottle capper. I prefer glass bottles because they keep the root beer colder longer and they allow me to regulate the amount of soda my kids are drinking.
The process starts by sanitizing the primary fermentation bucket, spoon, and bottles. I know you are tired of hearing it, but cleanliness here is critical. There will not be a significant accumulation of alcohol and therefore the mix is highly susceptible to contamination.
Next, mix the sugar, water, and extract in the primary bucket. I used the stovetop to warm up a gallon of water to help dissolve the 8 cups of sugar I was using (the recipe calls for 2 cups per gallon). Malto Dextrin may also be dissolved in the mix. Malto Dextrin gives root beer its foamy head. It is optional. Malto Dextrin does not affect the taste of the finished soda.
Make a yeast starter: A cup of warm water (95-100 deg.), tablespoon of sugar, and the yeast of your choice sprinkled on top. After about 5 minutes, stir the starter and add it to the primary. Stir vigorously. Leave the lid off of the bucket. You will not need it.
Now you are ready to fill your soda bottles. Fill the bottles leaving about an inch of headroom. If you are using plastic soda bottles, screw the caps on tightly. Glass bottles are capped using crown caps. Check for leaks.
As you fill each bottle from the spigot, make sure you are stirring your mix OFTEN. This ensures the even distribution of yeast that tends to settle to the bottom. Our first batch was not stirred quite well enough. As a result, we had some bottles that were fizzier than others. We had a lot of fun poking fun at those that got one of the “bad” bottles. However, we did get a little tired of cleaning up the mess afterward.
Now, comes the hard part. Not because the task is necessarily complicated or physically taxing, but because it involves patience. After securely capping the bottles, store them at room temperature for about a week for the carbonation to develop. To be on the safe side, I would recommend bottles be stored in plastic tubs until they are ready to be transferred to the refrigerator. A busted bottle can make an awful mess (trust me).
Carbonation will develop faster in warm environments and slower in cool environments. After a few days, you will want to monitor how much carbonation has developed in order to avoid over-carbonation. If you are using plastic bottles, carbonation can be monitored by simply squeezing the bottle. A well-carbonated soda will be firm like a store bought soda. If you are using glass bottles, you will need to open a bottle and give it a taste test. When your root beer is adequately carbonated, move ALL of it to the refrigerator. Refrigeration will stop the yeast activity and prevent exploding bottles due to over-carbonation.
The kids are very proud of their root beer creation; they often invite friends over to enjoy the root beer they made themselves. And, in case you worry (like me) about giving alcohol to your children, scientific test have found that root beer made through natural carbonation contains ~.35 - .6% alcohol. Your kids would have to consume about a gallon and a half to get the same alcohol as one 12 oz. beer.
My wife had a great idea. This fall, she wants to throw my daughter a root beer party for her birthday. As an activity, partygoers will bottle, cap, and label their own bottles of root beer with labels they decorate themselves. Then take them home with instructions.
Finally, if root beer is not your thing, you may want to try cream soda, ginger ale, cola or birch beer, all extracts available through Fine Vine Wines. Enjoy.
Vaughn Hardman - Euless, TX
Comments
and/or suggestions, please send them to geocorn@finethevinewines.com.
By the way, Vaughan received a $100 gift certificate from Fine Vine Wines, The Wine Maker's Toy Store for this article and you can get one, too! Just write an article for inclusion in our newsletter and if we use it (so far, we have used all submissions), you will receive a $100 gift certificate from us for use in the store. It's just that simple!
TOYS
OF THE MONTH
This month's toys are those that will help you
test the pH of your country wine. We have also added a pH Checker 1 Test Kit that includes the Checker 1 Tester and the solutions for buffering, storing and cleaning your meter. Priced individualy, these items would sell for $89.37, but to save you money, we have set the regular price at $84.99; however, this month, we have the test kit on special for $74.99 (almost $15.00 off!).
This month's special pricing is listed below:
Part Number |
Image |
Description |
Regular Price |
Current Price |
Order |
| 5444 |
 |
Storage Solution for pH Meters
|
$17.99 |
$14.99 |
Order |
| 5436 |
|
Checker 1 Economical pH Tester
Simple meter that provides fast & accurate pH measurement. Uses replaceable pH electrode & works for 3,000 hours before changing batteries. |
$49.99 |
$41.99 |
Order |
| 5418 |
 |
pH Test Strips - 100 strips
|
$4.41 |
$3.99 |
Order |
| 5438 |
|
Replacement Electrode for Checker 1 Economical pH Tester
|
$29.99 |
$23.99 |
Order |
| 5441 |
|
pH Meter Buffer Solution For pH 4.01 (20 ml)
|
$1.99 |
$1.50 |
Order |
| 5443 |
|
Electrode Cleaning Solution for pH Meters
|
$17.99 |
$14.99 |
Order |
| 5440 |
|
pH Meter Buffer Solution For pH 7.01 (20 ml)
|
$1.99 |
$1.50 |
Order |
| 5436A |
|
Complete Checker 1 Economical pH Tester Kit
Comes with Checker 1 Economical pH Tester, pH Meter Buffer Solution For pH 7.01 and 4.01, Electrode Cleaning Solution for pH Meters and Storage Solution for pH Meters |
$84.99 |
$72.99 |
Order |
NEW PRODUCTS
Wine Racks - Just in time for the holidays, we have finally added some wine racks to our product line. We have 2 styles, wood and metal. The wood racks are made from pine and the metal racks are coated with a heavy black plastic layer. We will have pictures up on the web site sometime this weekend.
Custom Corks - As most of you know, our #9 corks are not purchased from the regular home wine making distributors, but, instead, are purchased directly from a cork manufacturer in California. This company produces over 1 billion corks per year and the corks we purchase from them, will not leak! We feel our corks are the best available to home wine makers and we have been selling them with the Fine Vine Wines name imprinted on the cork or, for 1 penny more, the same cork with a grape design.
Now, you can get your own customize cork with your name and/or a logo! There is a one-time setup charge of $100 and a requirement that you order 1,000 corks at a time and the current price is $.14 per cork. For those of you that really want a personalize bottle of wine, here is you chance to have your own custom cork. Throw on a transparent capsule and everyone will see your name on the cork in the bottle. To order these corks, use the following links, or go to our online catalog and click on the custom corks link. Once you have placed your order, send us an email detailing what you would like on your corks and we will take care of the rest. Please allow 2-4 weeks for delivey.
To see all of our new products added this summer,
go to our New Products Page.
If you are looking for a product that I do not carry, my primary distributor is LD
Carlson and you can see their complete product list at their public catalog. If
you find anything you would like me to add, please let me know.
CALL
US!
If you have any questions about our products,
our service and/or wine making, please call us. We are not Corporate
America! We are here to serve you. I bring this up, because a
number of my callers apologize for bothering me or using my toll-free
line. You are definitely not bothering me and I have a toll-free
line so you WILL call me.
Sometimes, I am unable to answer the phone.
If you get the voice mail, please leave your name, number, brief
message and a best time to call. I will return your call as soon
as I can. I now have the Company Line forwarded to my cell phone
when I am not in the store. As a result, I am now available almost
24-7. I do need to sleep!
If you don't want to call, just send me an email.
I usually answer my email daily. In addition, your emails and/or
calls do not have to relate to wine. I will discuss any topic
you like, so please remember, I am your resource and I am here
for you.
WINE
OF THE MONTH
This month we are featuring 3 new wines from Winexpert, Italian Amarone, Italian Sangiovese and my favorite, the Sonoma Dry Creek Valley Unwooded Chardonnay. We have been after Winexpert to produce an Amarone and a Sangiovese for several years and they have finally come through with 2 excellent products. In addition, the unwooded Chardonnay has more of the "buttery" flavor for which some of you have been asking. Here is your opportunity to try some new flavors at a reduced price.
By the way, the Amarone is a Winexpert Selection Special, so it only makes 3 gallons. If you don't have a 3-gallon carboy, you will need to purchase it, as well.
Part Number |
Image |
Description |
Brand |
Regular Price |
Current Price |
Order |
| 13102 |
 |
Sonoma Dry Creek Valley Unwooded Chardonnay
A fresh, well-balanced wine with typical Chardonnay characteristics of tropical citrus aromas and flavors. Undimmed by oak, the fruit quality of these grapes is allowed to come through, and the rich, round mouthfeel lingers to a long, crisp finish. |
Winexpert Selection Estate |
$94.99 |
$84.99 |
Order |
| 13262 |
 |
Italian Sangiovese
A bright red cherry character overlaying strawberry notes with hints of violets and white pepper. It has medium body and a long, wonderfully smooth, tannic finish; livened by a zing of acidity and toasty oak and as always, a touch of the Tuscan earth. |
Winexpert Selection International |
$89.99 |
$79.99 |
Order |
| 13270 |
 |
Italian Amarone
Deep ruby red, this heavyweight wine exudes aromas of sour cherries, dark chocolate, stewed plums, dried fruits and molasses and has a spicy-earthy bittersweet finish that lengthens on indefinitely from the huge volume of tannins. |
Winexpert Selection Speciale |
$64.99 |
$55.99 |
Order |
CUSTOMER
FEEDBACK
We appreciate all of your comments, whether
good or bad. To demonstrate our commitment to outstanding customer
service, I have created a web page with your feedback. As we
receive emails that comment about our service, I will post them
on this
page.
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