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BACKUP WINE
The Timeline

4-week kit vs 6-week kit

Same basic process, different pace. The 4-week kit is your fast, friendly weeknight wine. The 6-week kit gives you body, structure, and aging potential. Pick the one that matches your patience.

4-Week Kit

About 4 weeks to bottle

Fast, friendly, easy-drinking everyday wine. Perfect first kit if you just want to see the whole cycle.

  1. Sanitize everything
    Day 1 — Morning

    Sanitize everything

    Mix your sanitizer and hit every surface that touches juice — bucket, lid, airlock, spoon, hydrometer.

  2. Mix the juice
    Day 1

    Mix the juice

    Pour the juice concentrate into the primary bucket and top up to the line with cool water. Stir well.

  3. Pitch the yeast
    Day 1 — Evening

    Pitch the yeast

    Sprinkle the yeast packet across the must, snap on the lid, and fit the airlock with a little water.

    📏 Starting SG ~1.080

  4. Primary fermentation
    Days 2–7

    Primary fermentation

    Airlock bubbles steadily for several days. Keep the bucket between 65–75°F and don't open it.

  5. Rack to the carboy
    Day 7

    Rack to the carboy

    Siphon off the wine, leaving the dead-yeast layer behind. Top up to the neck and re-attach the airlock.

    📏 Should read ~0.998

  6. Degas & stabilize
    Day 14

    Degas & stabilize

    Add the included stabilizers, then degas with a stirring whip until no more CO₂ rises.

  7. Add fining agents & clear
    Days 15–21

    Add fining agents & clear

    Stir in the clearing agents and let the wine sit. By the end of the week it should be brilliantly clear.

  8. Bottle day
    Day 28

    Bottle day

    Sanitize bottles, fill with the spring-tip wand, cork, and label with the time-honored blue tape.

  9. Short rest
    Week 5+

    Short rest

    Drinkable right away, but a week or two on its side smooths everything out.

6-Week Kit

About 6 weeks to bottle

More structured reds and whites with extra body and aging potential. The version we usually make.

  1. Sanitize everything
    Day 1 — Morning

    Sanitize everything

    Same drill — sanitize every tool and vessel you'll touch. The cleaner the kit, the cleaner the wine.

  2. Mix the juice & additives
    Day 1

    Mix the juice & additives

    Pour the juice into the primary, snip in any included oak or skin pack, and top up to volume.

  3. Take a starting reading
    Day 1

    Take a starting reading

    Drop the hydrometer into a sample of must and write the number on a strip of blue tape.

    📏 Starting SG ~1.090

  4. Pitch the yeast
    Day 1 — Evening

    Pitch the yeast

    Sprinkle the yeast across the surface. Don't stir it in — just lid and airlock.

  5. Primary fermentation
    Days 2–10

    Primary fermentation

    Vigorous fermentation for 5–7 days, then it slows. Stir gently each day if the kit calls for it.

  6. Rack to the carboy
    Day 10

    Rack to the carboy

    Siphon off into the glass carboy. Top up with water or matching wine to keep oxygen out.

    📏 Should read ~0.996

  7. Degas & stabilize
    Day 24

    Degas & stabilize

    Add sulfite and sorbate, then degas thoroughly. Skipping this leaves the wine fizzy.

  8. Fining & extended clearing
    Days 25–38

    Fining & extended clearing

    Add clearing agents and let it sit two more weeks. Patience here pays off in the glass.

  9. Bottle day
    Day 42

    Bottle day

    Sanitize 30 bottles, fill, cork, and tape-label. Plan a few hours and a friend.

  10. Cellar & rest
    Months 2–6

    Cellar & rest

    Lay the bottles on their side. Most 6-week reds get noticeably better with 2–3 months of rest.

Read the full guide →Shop a beginner bundle