Yes, all wines contain sulphites as it naturally occurs during fermentation.

We do not add any gluten to our wine kits, however, they are not certified gluten free.

We do not have calorie counts available at this time.

These are tartrate crystals which occur naturally. Winemakers and sommeliers often call these "wine diamonds" as they are seen as a quality indicator. These crystals have a bitter taste when consumed, but they don't make the wine taste bad - just decant and leave them behind when pouring and you're good to go. Maybe make them into some swanky wine jewelry?

Although these crystals do naturally form with age, keeping your wine out of really cool temperatures (below 15°C/60ºF) will help slow this process. Avoid storing in places like a cold car, garage, or unfinished basement floor for the best results.

The fining agents Isinglass and Chitosan are derived from fish and/or shellfish. If you have a fish and/or shellfish alergy, you can use a bentonite slurry for clearing instead. Your wine may take longer to clear, but this method generally works very well.

Bentonite is sterilized clay and can be purchased over and above the packet included in your wine kit. Replace Isinglass or Chitosan at the Clearing Stage with a Bentonite slurry using the method below:

• Use a clean, sanitized container
• Fill with approximately 1/2 cup of very hot water
• Sprinkle in 15g or 3 teaspoons of bentonite (Do not add the bentonite first and hot water second or you will have one clump of bentonite in the bottom of your container)

This is now slurry and needs to sit covered for approximately one hour, allowing the bentonite granules to hydrate.

Then:

• Rack wine into a clean and sanitized carboy
• If you are clearing your wine for the first time, add package #3 (potassium metabisulphite) and #4 (potassium sorbate) as instructed to the carboy of wine and degas your wine as instructed
• If you are re-clearing your wine, rack it and add ¼ tsp of potassium metabisulphite to the carboy of wine
• Gently stir the slurry into the carboy of wine for two minutes
• Stir the wine several more times allowing the bentonite to attract particles before settling
• Stir once or twice an hour for 2 minutes each for the next four or five hours (this is approximate; the idea is to keep stirring the wine and bentonite for the first day of the bentonite addition in clearing. Any schedule that stirs the wine 5 or 6 times in the day will work
• After last stir, let wine sit undisturbed

Your wine should start to clear within 72 hours and may take two weeks to finish clearing. Bentonite works efficiently at room temperature.