Kenridge
Kenridge produce higher end wine kits, containing a greater volume of grape juice than most kits including Beaverdale. The quality of Kenridge wine kits is reflected in the price they charge and accordingly we have only bought this brand on the odd occasion.
Kenridge Viognier - White 30 Bottles ABV 13%
We started fermenting this Viognier white wine on the 13th June 2013 and eventually bottled it nearly four months later on the 1st October. Believe it or not, it took that long to for this wine to fully clear, the longest time in my experience so far. Kenridge state that their finings are of a special quality (Ichtyocolle) and may take a little longer to complete their work. Maybe that is true but I have to say, I thought on several occasions that we were going to have a bad wine. I did I get some encouraging support, chatting with the lady at Dorset Homebrew, from whom we bought the kit. She explained that many home brewers had experienced difficulties with fermentation and clearing during the summer of 2013, due to unusually warm weather here in the UK. I wasn’t in total agreement with her because here in our house we were quite well protected from the heat and by comparison, wines of another brand we had been making had cleared to perfection in days without any problems. To stop myself thinking about this one, I placed the carboy containing the wine under a cloth and placed it in the corner of a darkened room.
The Verdict
We tasted our first glass of Kenridge Viognier nearly three weeks after bottling and both Lee and I are in agreement that this wine, for all of the doubts we had, is one of the best wines we have made so far. Kenridge has delivered a fine, strong and fruity flavoured wine. An excellent choice to accompany rich and spicy food as well as simply sitting back and savouring as an aperitif. Top marks *****
Kenridge Barolo - Red 30 Bottles
13/11/13 Despite giving this a vigorous stir to establish an even consistency in the juice, I could only get our hydrometer to read 1083. Kenridge state in their instructions that their kits might reach as much as 1095, so I am a little disappointed by this measurement. Kenridge kits contain 10 Litres of juice concentrate, as opposed to the 7 Litres provided by Beaverdale. I was under the impression that the extra three litres would guarantee a stronger product but it seems not. All our recent Beaverdale kits began fermentation with a gravity of 1082, so it would appear that Kenridge’s 10 Litres is actually a thinner juice concentrate.
At the time of writing this review the wine has only been two days in the fermenter and progress is very slow. I’ll come back to this review as progress is made.
Kenridge Chardonnay - White 30 Bottles
13/11/13 Just as with the Barolo above, I could only achieve a gravity of 1083 with this kit. All my comments regarding strength of concentrate stated above apply here also. I noticed that Kenridge Classic kits have been repackaged in a more simply designed box, which perhaps cuts down on printing costs. I trust they’re not cutting back in any other way.