What you get with the Cellar Craft Showcase Wine Kit
Cellar Craft Showcase wine kits are concentrated juice kits designed for home winemakers who want to produce bottle-worthy wine without the labor of handling fresh fruit or managing a full crush. Each kit contains a carefully balanced blend of grape concentrate, oak additions, and specialty ingredients sourced to replicate varietal character from classic wine regions, whether you are aiming for a bold Cabernet Sauvignon, a smooth Merlot, or a crisp white like Pinot Grigio. The Showcase line sits in the premium tier of the Cellar Craft family, meaning the juice concentration is higher and the inclusion of grape skins, oak chips, or oak powder is more generous, giving the finished wine more depth, tannin structure, and aging potential compared to entry-level kits.
Using a Showcase kit follows the familiar home winemaking process: you rehydrate and combine the concentrate with water in a sanitized fermenter, pitch the included wine yeast, and monitor fermentation with a hydrometer to track specific gravity as sugars convert to alcohol. Many Showcase varieties include bentonite for clarification, along with potassium metabisulfite and sorbate for stabilization before bottling. The kits are formulated to finish fermentation in roughly four to six weeks, followed by clearing and conditioning time, so with patience you get a wine that mirrors the body and mouthfeel of a wine aged in oak barrels, without needing actual barrels or specialized equipment beyond standard carboys, airlocks, and bottling supplies.
What distinguishes the Showcase series within the broader home winemaking market is its reputation for producing wines that taste closer to commercial bottlings than most kit wines, making it a favorite among hobbyists who want to gift bottles or serve them confidently at dinner parties. Varietals in the lineup often include regional-style labels such as Argentinian Malbec, Australian Shiraz, or California Chardonnay, letting makers explore different wine styles seasonally. Because the kits arrive with pre-measured ingredients and detailed instructions, they reduce the guesswork of sourcing fresh grapes or balancing acid and sugar levels manually, appealing both to beginners seeking a reliable introduction to winemaking and to experienced hobbyists who want consistent, high-quality results batch after batch.
- Premium concentrated juice blend with grape skins for added tannin and mouthfeel
- Includes bentonite, kieselsol & chitosan fining agents for brilliant clarity
- Oak infusion spiral or chips included for select varietals
- Yields approximately 6 gallons (23 liters) / one standard wine case of 30 bottles
- Detailed step-by-step instruction booklet for first-time and experienced vintners
- Balanced yeast strain selected specifically for the varietal profile
Technical specifications
- Yield
- approx. 6 gallons (23 L) / 30 bottles
- Fermentation Time
- 4-6 weeks
- Alcohol Content
- approx. 12-14% ABV
- Included Additives
- Bentonite, kieselsol, chitosan, oak spiral/chips
- Varietal Options
- Cabernet Sauvignon, Shiraz, Chardonnay, Merlot
Pros & cons
+What we like
- Produces noticeably richer body and color than base-level kits
- Clear, well-organized instructions suitable for beginners
- Fining agents included so no separate purchase needed
- Realistic 4-6 week turnaround to drinkable wine
- Good varietal authenticity (Cabernet, Shiraz, Chardonnay options taste true to style)
- Consistent batch-to-batch quality reported by repeat buyers
−Watch out for
- Requires separate purchase of fermenter, airlock, siphon and bottles if not already owned
- Oak flavor can be overpowering if steeped too long
- Higher price point than basic 4-week kits
- Some batches benefit from extra aging beyond kit's suggested timeline
- Shipping weight is heavy due to juice concentrate, raising freight cost
Should you buy it?
The Cellar Craft Showcase Wine Kit is a solid step up from entry-level kits, delivering fuller-bodied, more varietally accurate wine thanks to added grape skins and quality fining agents. It rewards patience—wines that rest a few extra weeks past the suggested schedule taste noticeably better—and remains approachable for home winemakers upgrading from basic kits, provided you already have core equipment on hand.
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