In theory, making wine is very simple. Yeast satisfies grape juice in an atmosphere that enables fermentation. It’s such a natural process that wine was possibly first found by pleased accident thousands of years ago: Natural yeasts, blowing in the wind, settled upon a number of squashed grapes, whose juice was pooling in the shaded dish of a rock. After fermenting, some fortunate passerby quits and stoops down for a preference … and also likes what he discovers.
From there, the procedure of winemaking will certainly be fine-tuned, as you can picture, as well as the setting carefully managed, to the factor where winemaking becomes both science and also art. As well as Do It Yourself home winemaking? Well, it most likely falls someplace between the interested stone-age wanderer and also the modern vintner that uses artful science to the procedure.
Anyway, winemaking at home calls for a number of items of low-cost equipment, serious cleanliness, and also a mess of patience.
Equipment Checklist:
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One 4-gallon food-grade-quality plastic bucket and lid to serve as the primary fermentation vat
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Three airlocks (fermentation traps)
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Three 1-gallon glass jugs to use as secondary fermentation containers
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About 20 wine bottles (you’ll need 5 bottles per gallon of wine)
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A funnel that fits into the mouth of the glass bottles
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A rubber cork (or bung) to fit into the secondary fermentation container
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Large straining bag of nylon mesh
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About 6 feet of clear half-inch plastic tubing
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Number 9-size, pre-sanitized corks
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Hand corker (ask about renting these from the wine supply store)
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A Hydrometer to measure sugar levels
Ingredient Checklist:
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Granulated sugar
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Wine yeast
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Lots and lots of wine grapes
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Filtered water
To the above basic list, you can refine the process by adding such things as Campden tablets to assist protect against oxidation, yeast nutrients, enzymes, tannins, acids, as well as various other fancy components to much better control your wine manufacturing.
Making Wine
Part 1
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Ensure your equipment is thoroughly sterilized and then rinsed clean. (Ask at the wine supply store about special detergents, bleaches, etc.). It’s best to clean and rinse your equipment immediately before using.
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Select your grapes, tossing out rotten or peculiar-looking grapes.
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Wash your grapes thoroughly.
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Remove the stems.
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Crush the grapes to launch the juice (called “have to”) right into the primary fermentation container. Your hands will certainly work here in addition to anything. Or go traditional as well as stomp with your feet. If you’re making a lot of white wine, you could check into renting a fruit press from a red wine supply shop.
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Add wine yeast.
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Put the hydrometer into the must. If it checks out less than 1.010, take into consideration adding sugar. If you’re adding sugar, very first dissolve granulated sugar in pure filtered water (sugarcoating helps enhance reduced alcohol levels). Mix the must thoroughly.
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Cover primary fermentation bucket with cloth; allow must to ferment for one week to 10 days. Over the course of days, fermentation will cause a froth to develop on top and sediment to fall to the bottom.
Part 2
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Gently strain the liquid to remove the sediment and froth.
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Run the juice through a funnel into sanitized glass secondary fermentation containers. Fill to the top to reduce the amount of air reaching the wine.
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Fit the containers with airlocks.
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Allow the juice to ferment for several weeks.
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Use the plastic tube to siphon the wine into clean glass secondary fermentation containers. Again, the purpose here is to separate the wine from sediment that forms as the wine ferments.
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Continue to siphon the wine off the sediment periodically (this is called “racking”) for 2 or 3 months until the wine is running clear.
Part 3
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Run the wine into bottles (using the cleaned plastic tubing), leaving space for the cork plus about a half inch or so of extra room.
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Insert corks.
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Store the wine upright for the first three days.
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After three days, store the wine on its side at, ideally, 55 degrees F. For red wine, the age for at least 1 year. White wine can be ready to drink after only 6 months.
