Wineguide.ca

How to make wine:

Equipment for Making Wine

Primary Fermentor- This is your basic big plastic white food grade bucket 6 to 8 gallons.

Secondary Fermentor/carboy- This is another container that you will siphon off your primary fermentor into. If your primary bucket is is between 6 to 8 gallons use a 5 gallon container. Use a regular food grade 5 gallon bucket with a good seal or use what is known as a "carboy"  this is a large glass vessel comes in sizes 1 thru 6.5 gallons usually it is fitted with a rubber stopper and a fermentation lock to prevent bacteria from entering during the fermentation process. 

Airlock- Fresh air is one of your wines biggest enemies. An airlock is fits on the lid of your primary and secondary fomenter to let carbon dioxide escape during fermentation. If you didn't have this your primary and secondary fomenter's would blow up and you will be mopping your house for a week.

Drilled Stopper- This you can get at a hardware store. A stopper is a rubber seal that fits in your lid or mouth of your carboy. You push your airlock into it to create and airtight fit.

Strain Bag - (fruit bag)- nylon mesh bag (look like a pillow case) that holds your fruit while it is in the primary fomenter. It keeps it all in one place. You will greatly thank yourself for getting one, when you are try to siphon (call racking) into your secondary fomenter. You don't want particles of fruit to get into your secondary fomenter. 

Racking Wand - a straight tube that you attach your siphon hose, and stick it in your fomenter.

Filling Wand- This is another stiff siphon tube that you attach to the working end of you siphon tube. It has a spring valve on the bottom, and it is used to fill bottles. You press down on the wand and it opens the valve, when the bottle is full you lift it up and it stops the flow. 

Siphon Hose/tube-clear sterilized plastic tube used to siphon off wine from one container to another.  

Funnel- large size for easy use.

Bottles-If you want to use real wine bottles you will have to buy a corker and corks. 

INSTRUCTIONS FOR GRAPE WINE

A basement or garage is ideal if temperatures permit cooler is best. You'll also need something to crush the gapes in. The old method of dancing on the grapes to crush them in a big vat is fine and dandy make sure all equipment is sterilized before starting, however these days consider a potato masher or food processor. 

prepare grapes by Washing and removing any rotten or bruised ones and discard all stems. Crush them in your handy-dandy crusher then transfer the must into the fermentor.

Immediately test the acid and sugar content. The acid content will likely be too low and the sugar too high so add an acid blend until it reaches .65%. Adjust the specific gravity by adding water until it reaches 1.095. Dissolve 15 grams (one-half dry ounce) of metabisulphite for each 150 lbs. of grapes and stir it thoroughly into the must.


Check the temperature of the mash to ensure 20° - 25°C (68°-80°F). If it's too warm, toss bagged ice into the middle for a few minutes then stir and check again. It it's too cool, toss a clean hot water bottle into the middle for a few minutes then stir and check again. Repeat as necessary. When the temperature is acceptable, add the yeast and stir it in then cover the fermentor tightly.

Inspect the mash daily and when a cap forms on top, stir it at least once a day to keep the cap broken and wet. As fermentation increases, heat will be produced so keep the must in a cool area. The longer you wait, the darker the wine will be but the more tannins it will have. Don't leave it longer than one week. Do not stir the must for at least 12 hours before siphoning it.

Siphon the juice into clean carboys and fill to about 80cm (3.5 inches) from the mouth, pressing the grapes in the press to extract all of the juice. Pressing the grapes is, however, optional.Set aside and seal about 10% of the juice to be used to top up the carboys later. Secure the bungs and air locks to the carboys and let the fermentation begin.


Ten days to two weeks later, the little cap in the air lock will stop popping up and down thereby indicating that the fermentation process has slowed down. Rack the wine into a second carboy, leaving the sediment in the bottom of the first carboy. Top up the second carboy with the juice that was set aside earlier then replace the air lock. Do this every ten days to two weeks until a month or two has passed.

Ok, so it's been about a month since you first siphoned your wine. check the specific gravity again. It if has reached 0.995 or lower, finish it off by racking it for the second-to-last time then adding the metabisulphite. Wait a day then add the isinglas. Wait ten more days then rack the wine for the final time. At this point you can bottle it or let it age a while longer in the carboy. The wine is drinkable now however the flavour will improve with age. 

Plum wine Recipe

3 lbs. very ripe plums
3 lbs. white sugar
1 gal. warm water
1 tsp. yeast nutrient
2 tsp. acid blend
2 Campden tablets
½ tsp. pectic enzyme powder
¼ tsp. grape tannin
Wine yeast 

Remove the pits then crush the plums. Put all the ingredients into your primary fermentor except the yeast. Add the warm water and stir until the sugar is dissolved then cover with an air-tight lid and airlock. 

When the juice has cooled to 70 - 75°F, stir the yeast in. Let the juice ferment for the next week or so but remember to stir it daily. 

When the specific gravity reaches 1.04, rack the juice into your carboy. Squeeze the pulp and add the resultant juice to the carboy. Let the juice ferment for about three weeks. 

Rack the wine and let it ferment about three more months. When the wine is clear and the specific gravity has stabilized, bottle the wine and let it age for about a year.