How to Make Wine
Making wine is a great project for wine enthusiasts and people who like to “DIY”. Wine has been made in people’s homes for thousands of years — why not give it a try yourself and learn how to make wine?
Most of us get our wine from the liquor store or the supermarket, but wine is easy and inexpensive to make at home. Using the right materials, making wine is pretty much fool proof.
Another benefit of making wine is that you can decide what fruit goes into the wine, how sweet or dry the wine is, and how long you want to age it.
Before you get started making wine, understand the laws behind home brewing. You are allowed to brew up to 200 gallons of wine depending on the number of people in your home. You must be 21 or older to make wine, and you are not allowed to sell your product. You can not distill it into liquor. Check your area regulations to make sure there are no other laws about making wine at home.
Home Wine Making Instructions
Here are home wine making instructions. To get started you’ll need the following materials.
- fruit juice of your choosing
- pounds and pounds of sugar
- Plastic water bottle or glass jug (this is the container for your wine)
- #8-#9 rubber stopper
- yeast
- commercial airlock (find at a brewer’s supply store or specialty food store)
- dowel rod and disposable spoon (for stirring)
- funnel
- turkey baster
- 2 liter bottles
- auto siphon (find at a specialty store)
- sanitizer, lots of sanitizer
How to Make Wine
Gather your fruit juice — use as much juice as the amount of wine you’ll want to make. 5 gallons of juice = 5 gallons of wine. You don’t have to use grapes — you can make cherry wine, apple wine, or whatever you want.
Removing the Stems
Remove the stems & seeds from the fruit. If this is not possible, mash up the fruit without damaging the seeds. The seeds contain nasty things that make the wine taste bad.
Dump this crud, called “must”, into the container.
The tough part — simmer 6 pounds of sugar in water until it becomes a clear syrup, and stir this into the must. Add enough water to almost fill the bucket and mix. You want to leave 4-6 inches of space for the foam and “cap” to rise in the container, or you’ll spill all over the floor.
Pour the Wine Yeast
Pour an envelope of wine yeast and stir up the “wine”. Once a day, for a week or so, stir up the must with your dowel and disposable spoon to break up the “cap”.
Let the mix sit undisturbed for a month. The best spot for your homemade wine is any dark and warm place that doesn’t get too much action. When you’re ready, siphon off the contents (leaving the sediment on the bottom), and drink or bottle it.
If you’re in no rush for your wine, siphon the stuff into another even larger container (this is called “racking”) and let it sit for as long as you can stand. Your wine will get better and more potent with age.