How to Prevent Homemade Wine Making Problems

In any endeavor, problems may occur and especially in homemade wine making we cannot just disregard these problems and should nip it in the bud as soon as possible. Here are some ways on how to prevent homemade wine making problems:

Problems and Prevention

1. Failed batches. Cleanliness and proper sterilization of all equipments and area to be used. Use a sulphite solution for cleaning equipments and the work area because plain hot water will not be ale to kill all the germs and bacteria. Be sure that the airlock always has sulphite solution and that it is never left empty.

2. Oxidation. This happens when wine is over exposed to air which happens when wine is poured or splashed. Always use a siphon when transferring wine from one container to another. Oxidation may also occur when the airlock is left dry and when there is too much air space over the wine left in the fermenter. To take care of this add store bought wine to lessen the air space every time you need to rack the wine.

3. Moldy or rotten taste. Select the best quality fruit or concentrate for your homemade wine. Rotten or moldy fruit will bring its taste to the wine making it taste the same. Quality fruit and materials equals quality wine.

4. Vinegar. Contaminated or unsterilized equipment is usually the cause why wine turns to vinegar. A 10% alcohol content and no air is needed to prevent vinegar bacteria from thriving in the wine while adding sulfur dioxide to new and finished wine will stop any growth of this bacteria.

5. Exploding bottles and corks. This is caused either by bacteria in the bottle or the wine was bottled when fermentation has not yet finished. Either refrigerate the wine bottle or put an airlock on the bottle until the fermentation stops is the best way to prevent any bottle or cork explosion. If the cork pushes out a little due to air that was trapped between the cork and the wine, re-cork the bottle and let it stand up for a day or two to let the air out.

6. Smell or flavor of yeast. This is due to either bottling before fermentation was finished, the use of the wrong yeast such as baking yeast and lack of racking before the wine was bottled. The best thing to do is to return the wine into the demijohn or fermenting bottle.

7. Hazy wine. If a good quality grape or fruit concentrate was used then this should not be a problem. The best solution is to use a fining agent like bentonite to take away the haze.

8. Soapy taste. Again this is due to equipments, demijohns and fermenters that were not properly cleaned, sanitized and rinsed. Use a sulphite solution when cleaning your equipments and rinse properly.

9. Corky flavor and scent. A corky flavor or scent is due to a substandard, defective or inferior cork that was used. It can also be due to a cork that has a lot of pinholes which allowed air into the bottle or the cork was over-soaked which leaves a woody taste. Be sure that quality corks are used and that the wine is properly corked or covered.

10. Woody aroma. Again this is due to over-soaking of the corks or it can also be due to a wooden barrel that was not properly kept. Adding or using oak chips and over-aging with it can also leave a woody taste. Proper upkeep of wooden barrels and leaving behind the oak chips used in the primary fermenter will help in keeping the wine's original taste and aroma.

There may be other problems that you may encounter while making your wine at home but the basic rules of clean, sanitized and properly rinsed equipments and avoiding the use of substandard and inferior supplies will help in preventing a lot of these problems.

Tommy Coffler is an expert author and an avid wine connoisseur. He currently writes articles for Best Wine Making, a site that aims to help people that want to learn how to make their own wine. The site provides them with wine making methods, as well as information on equipment, processes, and so much more.

Wine Making Supplies

One of the most popular beverages in the world is wine. Whine has an important role in celebrations, events, rituals and ceremonies.

Wines are usually made in prestigious wineries all around the world. Presently however, there are many people who make homemade wines both as a hobby and a small scale business. Most enthusiasts have their own wine making supplies.

Wine bottles are the most basic of all wine making supplies. Most bottles come in clear, green, red and blue colors and can hold 750 milliliters of wine. These bottles also look nice and are ideal to display the wine.

Labels are also part of a winemaker's cadre of wine making supplies. Most labels that can be purchased are already pre-gummed. This means that it can readily be placed to the bottles. All the winemaker needs to do is to print out the information. Usually, a packet contains 25 pre-gummed labels.

Bottle neck capsules and heat shrinks are also important wine making supplies. They are used to cover wine bottles. Aside from their practicality, they also add a professional look to the bottles.

Corks and sealing wax should also be available. Corks seal the bottle and will keep carbon dioxide inside until the wine is ready to be served. Several sizes of corks are available for different sizes of bottles.

Sealing wax is used to create an air tight seal on corked wine bottles. It prevents oxygen from entering the bottle. Because it forms a tight seal, the bottle can be stored on their sides or even upside down. The winemaker only needs to dip or pour melted wax on the bottle tip. A pound of sealing wax is enough to seal 100 bottles of wine.

All of the items mentioned above are wine making supplies that are used when the wine is finished. But there are also other supplies that are needed even before the production of wine.

Some of the most important wine making supplies are cleaners and sanitizers. They are used to clean, sanitize and deodorize wine making equipment.

Cleaners and sanitizers are a set of products. These include sodium bisulfite to kill molds and harmful bacteria in wine making equipment, campden tablets to destroy the bacteria in the wine itself and barrolkleen which is specifically designed to clean and sterilize wooden barrels.

Most of these wine making supplies can be purchased from wine making shops or from the internet.

Milos Pesic is and internationally recognized expert on wine, wine making and wine tasting. He runs a highly popular and comprehensive Red Wine and White Wine web site. For more articles and resources on wine making and tasting, wine recipes, wine reviews, vintage wine and much more visit his site at:

=>http://wine.need-to-know.net/

Wine Making Kits For Homemade Wines

Wine making and fermenting your own homemade wine takes a lot of time and effort. It doesn't necessarily equate to being a complicated process, the procedure is actually very simple but the whole wine making process will require an extended period of toiling.

Most people would define wine as an alcoholic beverage made from fermented grape juice. It is a popular definition because grapes are the usual base fruit or juice used in making wines, but according to some wine connoisseurs , Wines are basically any alcoholic drink produced from any non-toxic fruit juice (Strawberry wine, Pear Wine, Apple Wine, etc.)

Wine making consists of very simple steps that any person with the right equipment could do. As long as you have the basic wine making kit, you could produce wine whenever you desire.

Making homemade wines if, done properly, could produce good quality wines that may taste just as good as any commercially available wines. And since you are the one making your own drink, you could experiment on the acid levels, alcohol levels and the sweetness of the beverage that would suit your taste.

If you're planning to produce your own homemade wine, you will need a few equipment necessary for the fermentation of the juice. The list of equipments consists of the following:

1.A primary (primary fermentation vessel) which most of the time comes in the form of a plastic bucket or pail. This is where you will mix your concoction together with your ingredients.

2.A sieve or a mesh bag or a nylon straining bag where you will put your chopped, crushed or sliced fruits during flavor and aroma extraction.

3.Sterile cloth that will cover your bucket during the primary. This will prevent contaminants and bacteria from getting in to your concoction and at the same time, it will allow the unwanted vapors from your mixture to escape.

4.A siphon hose which you will use when you are going to transfer the wine from the primary to the secondary fermentation vessel. You will also use this when you are going to rack your wine.

5.A secondary fermentation vessel, most of time, Carboys are used as secondaries because it is easy to airlock and it is more resistant to scratching.

6.Air locks which is vital for the anaerobic fermentation process that the mixture must go through to produce wine.

7.Bottles which will be used for aging the wine.

8.Corks to secure the wine inside the bottles.

9.Hydrometer, which is one of the most important equipments you will need because this will measure the specific gravity of the wine.

The listed items is actually the basic wine making kit. Some of the tools you will need that were included on the list could be replaced by or substituted by common household items. Just remember that the substitutes you will use are sanitized and sterile.

Using tools that haven't been properly sanitized may cause spoilage in the wine you are making.

Of course, there are other tools and equipments as well that you could use to ferment your own homemade wine. But some of those are already for advanced wine makers. As a beginner, the list should suffice until you have become a true fanatic of homemade wine making.

There are additional ingredients or additives as well that you will require when making your homemade wine. These ingredients may not be bought from regular convenient stores and may be difficult to find. If there is a Wine Maker store near your place, then you are in luck, otherwise, these essential ingredients will be difficult to obtain.

These additives required in wine making are:

1.Sulfites, the most common sulfite used is the Campden Tablet

2.Acid Blend or Citric Acid

3.Tannin

4.Pectic Enzyme

5.Potassium Sorbate

6.Yeast Nutrient

7.Sugar

8.Yeast

9.Wine Finings

All of these ingredients are essential to wine making. If one of these is absent or missing during your wine making process, it is likely that the fermentation will produce a bad batch of wine or the fermentation will not be successful at all.

Be sure that before you start making your wine, you have the complete ingredients along with your complete tools.

Now that we have listed the complete basic wine making kit you will need to ferment your alcoholic beverage, we are going to give you a simple step by step instruction on how to turn your fruit juice into wine.

1.Fruit preparation - from the moment you pick out and choose the fruit you will be using as your base fruit, it is already part of the wine making process. This also entails the chopping, slicing and crushing of the fruit which will be put in the straining bag or sieve in the primary.

2.Pour water in the primary where the bag is. Whether to use cold or hot water will depend on the specific instructions of that specific recipe you are making.

3.Adding the Ingredients - All additives that were listed, except the wine yeast and the yeast nutrients will be added in the concoction. These should be mixed until all the ingredients have dissolved.

4.Cover the primary with the sterile cloth and leave for at least 24 hours depending on recommended specific gravity required as specified in the recipe.

5.Transferring to the secondary - When you have reached the recommended specific gravity, you will now have to transfer the must into the secondary, add the yeast and yeast nutrients, stir then cover with air lock.

6.Racking - When the wine have reached a specific gravity as indicated in the wine making recipe you have, you will need to transfer the wine to another secondary vessel. You are to leave the lees or the sediments found at the bottom of the Carboy. These lees are dead yeast cells. Prolonged exposure to it may cause the wine to taste bad.

7.Rack again - After a recommended period, you may check your wine's clarity. If the wine is already clear and has no more sediments at the bottom of the vessel, you may proceed to the next step. Otherwise, you will have to rack again and again until the wine becomes clear and free of lees.

8.Bottling - once the wine is already clear, this is will indicate that the fermentation process is over. You may now transfer the wine in smaller bottles.

9.Aging - this step will require a really long time. It may take six months to a year before the wine is aged enough to have that good taste. The recipe or wine book you are following should have a recommended period of time for the aging process. Once it has aged long enough, you may now taste your wine to see if it still needs to age longer.

10.Enjoying - At this point, your wine have already aged long enough and already tastes like expensive wine. It is now time to enjoy your home made wine.

The listed steps are the general steps in fermenting homemade wine using wine making kits. If you will notice, it was mentioned repeatedly that some procedures will depend on the recipe you are following. This is because the amount of time, additive or ingredients required may vary from one fruit to another or from one variety of fruit to another.

Each fruit and each variety of fruit will have its own characteristics and its own level of acidity, sweetness and the like which may affect the variation of needed additives.

Now, if you find these steps complicated, you may want to start with fermenting fruit juices i wine kits. There are Wine kits available now that sells concentrated juice together with pre-measured ingredients to add and an easy to follow recipe or instructions to homemade wine making.

These wine kits are expensive and don't come with the wine making equipment but if you really want to learn, this may be the simplest and easiest way to learn since everything is already laid out for you. Just so you'd get the feel of fermenting wine.

But if you really want to experience first hand what it's like to make wine from choosing the fruit to enjoying the beverage, then you better start looking for fully ripe fruits now.

If you are wondering what kind of fruits you could ferment and turn into wine, and what flavors wine kits offer, we suggest that you visit the blog site, Wine Making Kits. It has additional information of the process of making homemade wine and some information on the available kits in the market.

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Why Yeast is So Important in Wine Making?

The character of a wine is very much determined by the type of yeast used as well as the speed of fermentation. Without yeast there would be no ferment, and although most wines are made by using an added dried yeast, all fruits have their own natural yeast. But why is yeast so important in wine making?

Yeasts are mostly single celled microorganisms, of which the species Saccharomyces cerevisiae has been used in the fermenting of alcoholic drinks for millennia. During fermentation, these fungii are responsible for converting natural sugar in the fruit into carbon dioxide and alcohol. The art of winemaking really comes down to the art of managing and controlling the yeast.

Most winemakers choose to introduce a cultured yeast with a known specific character that they want in their wine. Before introducing the desired yeast they have to kill off the natural yeast with a controlled amount of sulphur dioxide (Campden tablets in home winemaking). Next, the yeast is brought to life by dissolving it in warm water, between 40-43°C, and allowing it to multiply for 15 minutes, before introducing it into the must (grape juice).

After inoculation, a fermentation will begin within a few days, and as the yeast consumes more and more of the sugar, the temperature will start to rise sharply. It is now that the skills of the winemaker come in to play as he or she must intervene and try to control the speed of the ferment, especially for the production of delicate white wines. The slower the ferment goes on, the longer it lasts, which usually results in more complex flavours and characters showing through. Should a wine ferment quickly at higher temperatures, much of these flavours will be removed via the carbon dioxide, and the yeast will burn itself out sooner.

For the fermentation of many white wines, the ideal is to cool the vessel at intervals, keeping the temperature stable and controlled enabling a prolonged ferment. This is done either by cooling the outside surface of the vessel or by passing coolant through internal pipes built inside the vessel.

It is important to taste the wine regularly during fermentation to ensure that no nasty off-flavours are being produced. Once the yeast has completed its task, it dies and sinks to the bottom of the vessel and forms the 'lees' (dead yeast cells). By leaving wine on the lees for some time can enhance flavours dramatically, while at the same time it can also impart hydrogen sulphide or bad eggs flavours into the wine. This is a winemakers balancing act, and negligence at this stage is the cause of a many a poor wine.

There are several types of yeast, some can tolerate high alcohol levels and are used in red wines, others are low foaming and ideal for barrel or low temperature fermentations. While yet more are specifically for restarting stuck or difficult fermentations.

Yeast is so important in wine making that large choices of many strains are now available to winemakers, and great care is taken to select the right one for a particular style of wine. Next time you drink a glass of wine, remember it was the yeast that helped to give the wine it's defined character.

Rob Hemphill has been a professional winemaker for over 20 years, and is now a freelance marketing writer based in the UK. He specializes in wine consultancy and has a wide knowledge in vines, vineyards and wine growing techniques as well. His favourite varietals are Gewurztraminer and Shiraz.

To learn more about wine, please visit Understanding Wine.

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Wine Making Tradition and Technology

Change is afoot in the wine-making industry. Traditional wine-makers in Europe are horrified by the transformation by science and technology of the ancient art of making wine. Vintners in Spain, and particularly France, have shunned the new technology, and it has been to their detriment. Some people think that the changes that have come about because of science are a bad thing because they sometimes have increased yield at the expense of quality. Other people think that these traditionalists are snobby and worried that high-quality, complex wines will become cheaper. Good or bad, change is definitely here.

The entire industry is being changed by science; from irrigation to new corking systems, and from vine genetics to bacterial and disease control. Newer wine producing countries such as Australia and Chile that do use the new technology are becoming world class producers of quality wine. The rapidity with which they have done so can largely be attributed to science and technology.

Many parts of the older wine producing regions prohibit improvements in irrigation technology, and those improvements have perhaps been the single biggest factor in the success of New World wine producing countries. There are two new techniques. One is restricted deficit irrigation. This keeps vines under conditions of stress and gives growers control over grape size and quality. The other is drip irrigation. This requires a high investment in capital but it is far more efficient than traditional flood irrigation. Progress in understanding vine stress and its relationship to wine composition, as well as in being able to manage this, has helped many New World wine regions to use irrigation intelligently to maximize the quality of their wines.

James Lapsley, a wine economist at the University of California at Davis, commented "As we look at wine more as something that is produced, rather than as a unique product from a particular place, this also allows us to think of ways to increase the level of flavor or speed up aging." Roger Boulton, who is a professor of enology and chemical engineering also at the University of California at Davis, had this to say: "Scientific research is helping to clarify the specific chemistries of grape flavors and aromas, microbial byproducts and their sensory aspects, from the facts, confusion and myths that were in place,"

Scientists have found that micro-oxygenation, for example, gives to wine stored in stainless steel a flavor that is reminiscent of that of wine aged in barrels. Another way to quickly and easily add complex flavor to a wine is to add oak chips to the wine and analyze the amount of oak flavor.

Change, driven by science is inevitable even in processes like winemaking that have been considered as more of an art. People are always looking for a better way to get more consistently higher quality product for a cheaper price. The high quality of wines produced by regions that have been more enthusiastic about improvements in science and technology suggests that these changes are a good thing.

Tracy Crowe loves good food and wine.

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Wine Making as an Ancient Art

Wine making is an ancient art -- probably more ancient than most people realize. In Godin Tepe, Iran, for example, ancient pottery has been discovered that dates back to before the Bronze Age (c. 3500-2900 BC), and chemical testing has proven that the pottery contained wine.

This is even more interesting when you know that grapes were not grown in the region where the pottery was discovered, so it is very likely that the wine was a trading commodity. Godin was located on the Silk Road from China to the Mediterranean and the Mediterranean is the most likely source of the wine.

It is a well-known and well-established fact that grapes were grown in Egypt around 3000 BC. Other pottery finds have been pretty well established through chemical analysis that wine was a trading commodity that long ago.

Of course, wine and wine making has evolved over the millenniums. The wine on the shelves of your local supermarket or liquor store is certainly made much differently (and probably under much more sanitary conditions) than the wine that was being made 5,000 years ago. But, it is still wine, and the basis of the wine has not ever changed. Grapes!

Wine can be made from fruits other than grapes, but the process is the same, and the best wines are still made from the best grapes in the world -- and that debate rages on! Which grapes are the best grapes, and which regions can grow the best grapes? The differences in opinion on these questions is what keeps the industry thriving.

Poems have been written and songs have been sung about the wonderful world of wine. Wine is the most romantic of all drinks, and probably always will be because of its long and storied history.

Milos Pesic is and internationally recognized expert on wine, wine making and wine tasting. He runs a highly popular and comprehensive Red Wine and White Wine web site. For more articles and resources on wine making and tasting, wine recipes, wine reviews, vintage wine and much more visit his site at:

=>http://wine.need-to-know.net/

Basics of the Wine Making Process

In this article you will be given a brief introduction to the wine making process and a summary of each step from harvesting to bottling. Wine making has been around for thousands of years and it is quite a natural process that requires very little human intervention. Every wine maker has their own special process which contributes to the uniqueness and diversity of wines, making life much more interesting. Although there are many different methods and variations involved in creating wine, there are five essential steps that must take place. These five steps include harvesting, crushing/pressing, fermentation, clarification, and aging or bottling.

The first step of making wine is known as harvesting or picking of grapes. Grapes are the only fruit that can reliably produce the necessary amount of sugar on an annual basis to yield sufficient alcohol to preserve the wine. Tannins, esters, and acids are other factors of grapes that help provide consistency. Grapes must be harvested at exactly the right time, ideally when physiologically ripe. Modern wine makers rely on a combination of science and old-fashioned tasting to determine when to harvest their grapes. Usually outside consultants, vineyard managers, and proprietors all have a vote in the decision of when to harvest. Picking grapes can be done with the use of machines or it can be done by hand. Most wineries prefer the latter claiming that mechanical harvesters can be too rough on the grapes, vines, and land. After the harvest wine makers sort the grapes into bunches sifting out rotten and under ripe fruit before crushing.

Crushing is the next step in the wine making process which is now done with mechanical presses. For thousands of years this step was done by men and women who performed the harvest dance in barrels and stomped on the grapes, turning them into must. Although machines have removed the romance and ritual of these traditions, there has been a huge gain in regards to sanitation. Mechanical crushing has improved the quality and longevity of wine while also reducing the need for preservatives. Keep in mind, not all grapes begin the transformation to wine in the crushing step. Some wine makers allow fermentation to begin with uncrushed grape clusters, allowing the weight of the grapes to burst the skins naturally before being sent to the presses. There is no difference in the process of wine making for reds and white until the crushing step. For a white wine, the maker will quickly press the must after crushing to separate the juice from the skins, seeds, and solids. This prevents color and tannins from getting into the white wine. Red wine on the other hand is left in contact with its skins to infuse color, flavor, and tannins into the wine.

After the grapes have been crushed and pressed, the must is allowed to sit and will begin to ferment within 6-12 hours with the help of wild yeasts in the air. Some wineries welcome this natural fermentation while others will intervene and eliminate the natural, wild yeasts and add yeast that produces a more predictable end result. Once fermentation begins it will usually continue until all sugar is turned into alcohol leaving a dry wine. This can be a period of anywhere from 10 days to a month. Alcohol levels will vary from one wine to the next depending on the sugar amount in the initial must. Wines made in cool climates will generally produce an alcohol level of 10 percent and wines made in warmer climates can be up to 15 percent. For sweet wines, the fermentation is cut short to allow some of the sugar to be preserved. This is almost always intended by the wine maker for a specific style of wine.

Once the fermentation is completed the clarification process begins. Wine makers can rack or siphon their wine from one tank to another to separate the wine from the precipitates and solids at the bottom of the first tank. Filtering is done with large filters that catch large solids and with sterile pads that strip all life from the wine. Fining happens when substances such as egg whites, clay, and compounds are added to the wine to clear them out. These substances will stick to the solids and push them to the bottom of the tank. The stripped wine will then be transferred to another vessel for aging and bottling.

Finally, the wine is either bottled immediately or allowed to age. Aging can be done in a bottle, stainless steel or ceramic tanks, and large wooden barrels called barriques. This last stage leaves room for endless choices on behalf of the wine maker and has a defining impact on the final product. Hopefully this article has taught you the basics of the wine making process and a tiny bit of history. The next time you enjoy a bottle of wine you can reflect on everything that happened leading up to you sipping that wine from your glass!

If you are interested in learning more about wine and the wine making process, most wine of the month clubs provide an informative newsletter with their monthly wine selection.

Wine Making 101 - From the Vine to the Bottle

Have you ever wondered how a simple grape can go from being fresh and sweet on the vine to ending up as one of the most sought after drinks in the world? The secret is in the process of wine making. There is more to it than just crushing grapes and bottling the juice, there are ten main steps in the wine making process:

First, the grapes must be picked from the vine. This is either done by hand or with special farm equipment.
Next the grapes are pressed and/or crushed to separate the flesh, the skin, and the juice. This part of the process will depend on the wine being made. Some wines, such as red wine, require the grapes to be crushed and then pressed to remove the juice. However, white wines are usually just pressed to minimize the contact of the juice with the skin.
Yeast is added to the mixture so that it can ferment. During fermentation the yeast feasts on the sugar and produces alcohol and carbon dioxide as by-products. The carbon dioxide will cause the skins to rise to the top of the vat where they are removed.
After the fermentation process the wine must be stabilized by lowering the temperature. The liquid is brought down to a level near freezing and kept there for two weeks. This allows for the removal of the wine crystals which are suspended in the liquid.
Next the wine is allowed to ferment for three to six months. During this time tests are completed to insure that the wine has the correct bacteria level and is fermenting properly.
Before bottling the wine it must first be clarified to clean out any particles, from microscopic to large, that might ruin the wine.
The next step is to mix or blend two or more wines in order to achieve the perfect taste.
Once the wine is free of anything that could spoil it, and mixed to the appropriate taste, preservatives are added to keep the liquid fresh.
The wine is now ready to be bottled and sealed.
Finally, the wine is laid to rest until it is time for shipment and consumption.

The eleventh, unofficial step, is to enjoy that glass of wine even more now that you understand the wine making process.

Have you ever considered visiting a US winery? There are many to choose from. Once you have taken this trip, and your wine collection is growing, you should consider using wine software to manage your collection.

Wine Making at Home Step by Step - Make Your Own Wine at Home

Wine making at home is not tough at all and it is actually a very cool hobby.

You can make wine from home one of two ways. One is from a kit that comes with instructions and is usually made with something along the lines of grape concentrate. The other way is to do it from scratch step-by-step. This way is much more rewarding. And although making wine from home from scratch, step-by-step, is more time-consuming and more difficult the results are much better as you have total control of the type of wine you make, how it tastes, and the quality of the wine overall. If you are looking to make wine cheaply and quickly and are not too concerned about quality then a wine making kit will suffice. If you want to make a wine that you can be glowing with pride from then read on.

You can make wine successfully from many different types of fruits not only the obvious grapes but also apricots, plums, elderberries, pears, peaches, apples. You can pretty much make your own wine from home using almost any fruit.

Here is a list of the equipment and supplies you will need to make your very own fine wine.

A large plastic tub where steel pot to press juice into. A lid will be required.
Something to squeeze or press the fruit with. The easiest way is to use an electric juicer.
A glass vessel that will be used to ferment and store the fruit juice such as a jug. You can get the proper vessel at a brewing shop or online at a wine making supply website.
A plastic tube for siphoning purposes.
Yeast which is available at your local super market
Sugar
You will also need something to clean your equipment. You can either use boiling water or sterilizing solutions or tablets.

Step one to making your own wine at home - get your juice

Press the fruit you are going to use to make your home wine either using a hand press or the electric juicer. You will want enough juice to fill the glass fermentation vessels you are using.

A lot of times a wine making recipe will recommend watering down your juice to get the volume you need. If you want the absolute best results do not do this as this will cut down on the flavor of the end product.

Do not be afraid to get creative. There is nothing wrong with mixing the juice from several different types of fruits together to make your own unique blend of wine. In the beginning if you are new to making wine from home you may not want to wing it like this. You can follow a step-by-step recipe.

Step two to making your own wine from home - add the sugar

Very sweet juices will not need the addition of sugar to the recipe. The main purpose of the sugar is that of fermentation or the production of alcohol. Fruits that are naturally very sweet like a sweet grapes will not need the addition of sugar. If you decide to add sugar generally speaking add anywhere between 1 - 2 pounds of sugar per 1 gallon of fruit juice or lesser amount if you want a drier wine.

One thing you can do if you like to experiment is make several different batches of the same wine varying the amount of sugar that you use in each batch so if you have a five glass vessels for example you can use a slightly different amount of sugar for each vessel making note of the results of the end product. You can also use the same experimentation process to experiment with different fruits and fruit combinations. With time and experience you will be able to develop your own unique fine wine that no one else has. Keep in mind the more sugar you use the higher the alcohol content will be of the wine when you are finished.

Add the sugar to the fruit juice by warming the fruit juice and a pot stirring in the sugar. Warming the fruit juice first will ensure the sugar gets dissolved completely.

Step number three to making wine from home - add the yeast

Make sure your glass vessels are sterilized with the sterilizing solution or tablets or boiling water. Put the sugar fruit juice into the glass vessel. Add the powdered yeast and a little warm water and sugar into a cup to dissolve it. Leave it for a few minutes. This will start the activation process of the yeast. Add the yeast to the fruit juice mixture. Put your airtight lid on top. The yeast will convert the sugar into alcohol as your wine ferments.

Step number four to making your own homemade wine - the most important step, patience

Put your fermentation vessels (the glass jugs with the sugar wine yeast mixture) in a warm place generally speaking between 70 and 85°F. For the best results you want to let your wine ferment for at least six months. For best results up to a year. If you are inpatient and drink your wine too soon you will not be satisfied with the results.

For many people this waiting part is the toughest part as they are anxious to drink their own homemade wine.

As your wine mixture ferments you will notice the accumulation of dead yeast cells on the bottom of the glass jug. Leaving this dead yeast in the wine mixture will affect the taste quality negatively. The way to combat this is about once a month or so siphon the wine out into a new glass vessel making sure not to siphon the dead yeast from the bottom of the original glass vessels.

Check on your wine every couple weeks. Depending upon how much this dead yeast is accumulating you may want to siphon the wine a little more or less frequently than once a month.

The final step to making wine from home - bottling your wine

Place the wine in a cold place for one to two weeks however make sure you do not freeze it. Generally speaking a temperature of between 40 to 50°F. is good. This will improve the wines clarity making it a better quality. Bottle the wine and cork it. There are places you can go online to get your own custom wine

labels.

If you are serious about wine making as you are making wine you want to keep accurate records of the exact techniques, ingredients, and methods you use to make each batch of wine. This way when you make a superb batch of wine you will have the exact recipe for that and you can replicate it for years to come.

If you are really fanatical about the quality of your wine let your wine sit on a rack for a couple of years. At this point you are probably so excited about drinking your own homemade wine this may be difficult. What I would recommend you do is make a large enough batch so you can bottle and rack most of it for several years and still have enough left over to enjoy and drink now.

I virtual mall of wine making resources including where to get wine making supplies and even the fruit totally free as well as hundreds of great articles and recipes for making wine at home make sure to take a peek at the winemakers inner circle.

Wine Making Instructions - Do You Really Need Them?

Do You Need Good Wine Making Instructions To Put You On The Right Path?

Wine making instructions tell you a lot of things that are important to the entire process. For example, instructions may indicate how to ferment your wine within a specific temperature range. Wine making instructions may also be useful for making a particular type or style of wine. These wine making instructions allow you to gain knowledge in a way that's fun and enjoyable.

For example, you can read wine making instructions on how to make strawberry wine, or how to calculate alcohol content. You could also read about how to make your wines sweet (or sweeter), or make your wine with high alcohol. Having a solid guide will help you to create a finished product that you will be more likely to enjoy, as compared to blind experimentation. Wine making instructions are not just for beginners who just want to get started.

Some wine making instructions are too complicated. For this reason, beginners making wine often become discouraged and quit. It's best to start with simple wine making instructions with pictures of ingredients and tools to help you get started on the right path in home wine making.

Making wine from kits is usually very easy and usually successful. Probably the worst that might happen is you could end up with quite a few bottles of a particular style of wine that isn't exactly what you had expected. For your first few batches using a kit would be recommended.

When you engage in the wine making process, you should make yourself aware of the overall wine making instructions so as to be able to maximize your capability and understand the entire process. Later you will be able to create your own world of wine as you add your personal touches. After you have gained some experience you will be able to use these only as a guide, and you will be confident in your choices as you modify the ingredients from the original recipe.

Using written instructions will also help you be more successful in your fruit selection. Wine can be made from just about any fruit, including grapes, cherries, peaches, plums, to name a few. You can choose to make it from fresh fruit, or from a concentrate. Making wine from fresh fruit is the most labor-intensive and complicated method of making wine, but most would agree that it is also more rewarding.

Wine making is as old as the hills though the pleasure of making wine today is sure to be the same as it was in the days gone by. Wine making instructions help the whole process to be a fun and exciting hobby and you'll enjoy doing it for many years to come. In fact, people often compare wine making to planting a garden and watching it grow.

Like anything else, wine making gets better over time. The more you make it, the better you will get. It is one of those true art forms that can change the way you look at the world and the people in it. As you gain experience you will be sure to enjoy the process if you don't quit. To help avoid discouragement, try starting by using wine making instructions.

David Hall is recognized as a leading expert on wine, wine making and wine tasting and is author of 'The Wine Connoisseur' ebook and audio book. Discover even more about wine making instructions and other wine making secrets! Get instant access to his Special Report entitled "Discovering Wine" with your free subscription to his mini-course at www.Wine-Handbook.com

White Wine Making

White Wines vs. Red Wines: Do you know All the Differences?

You don't need me to tell you that the difference between red wines and white wines is the color. But I'm sure that I can mention a few facts about wines that you didn't know. For example, did you know that many white wines are produced with red grapes?

The Tannic Element

White wines are characterized for having low levels of tannin, while red wines contain it in high quantities. I know what you're thinking...It is safe to deduct, then, that this tannic element is entirely responsible for a wine's color, correct? Correct! Tannins place a significant role in wine color, since they carry the pigments that give it a dark, reddish hue. They are extracted from grape stems, seeds and skins where they are found in high concentrations.

Color Hues

When white wines are made, these skins, stems and seeds (lees) are isolated from the must, or pressed grapes. Winemakers do this to prevent the reddish color and qualities that tannins impart in the wine, thus obtaining an amber-colored drink, instead of a ruby-colored one. Tannin concentrations depend not only on how much of the lees are left in the fermentation vessel, but also for how long they remain in contact with the must. Because of this, you will find many different red wines with different hues of red. The darker the red is, the longer it has been in contact with the grape juice and must.

Wine Qualities According to Color

Aside from color, tannins give wines a heavy, round, complex quality. This makes red wines warmer and spicier in nature, full-bodied and with a prevalent sedimentation. On the other hand, white wines tend to be crisp and light, and generally they summon wine enthusiasts that are looking for a fruity, refreshing drink.

Fermentation Practices: Whites vs. Reds

Red wines also differ from whites in terms of their fermentation and ageing. White wines, for one, are generally fermented at cool temperatures and for a long time. Red wines, on the other hand, require warmer temperatures, and a speedier fermentation process. Winemakers use this temperature variation in white wine making in order to stall fermentation - which aids in the development of tannins. To compensate for the slow fermentation progress, vintners extend the process to achieve a 'tannic complexity, but without high tannin contents.

The Effect of Oak in White Wine Ageing

In addition to fermentation, the use of oak enhances tannin extraction into the wine. With this in mind, you'll find that darker red wines are most frequently aged in oak - and that white wines are rarely exposed to this wood. One example of a white wine that is aged in oak is the Chardonnay. Proof of higher tannin content, Chardonnays are generally drier, slightly round-bodied and darker than other white wines. In replacement to oak barrel ageing, white wines are most commonly treated in stainless steel vats. The use of metal not only prevents tannin extraction, but it aids in temperature control and is more affordable than conventional oak barrels. Also related to tannin concentrations is the length of ageing. Ageing offers best results in wines that offer high tannic levels, as tannins fully develop and grant the aged wine with a complex quality, full body and robust flavor. Because of this, and since white wines have little tannins, these are recommended to be aged for 12 months or less.

Pierre Duponte is a grape growing and wine making expert. For more information on red and white wine making visit http://www.grapegrowingwinemakingtips.com/.

Home Made Wine Making - Some Things You Might Not Know

As wine has become more popular in the United States and growing steadily every day, there has been an increase also in the making of wine for personal consumption.

Wine making supplies have become readily available and producing wine at home allows the wine lovers to be able to stock their wine racks and cellars with their own product. Of course there have been many a bad drop of red and white wine made at home but as the hobby has now more followers, the recipes, supplies, equipment and utensils are much improved.

The winemaking kits have helped the process of making wine at home easier and so more and more are taking up this fascinating pastime. There is quite a band of people indulging in homemade wine making and exchanging recipes and tips to improve their batches. How we like our wine is a very personal thing. What one person likes another may think is not worth drinking. The wine making kits for homemade wine making help to keep the results of a batch more consistent and so more people will enjoy the same wine.

Using Homemade Wine To Create Your Family Tradition If you have started your own homemade wine making then why not start your very own family traditions by making a special wine for those family celebrations. Think of how it will be when you have a special wine for an anniversary, birthday, Thanksgiving, Christmas, the birth of a child. There are many times when your family and friends will appreciate your wine. Preparing your vintage can be timed for these special occasions as you will know exactly when to bottle and when the wine will be ready to be opened because the homemade wine making kit will have all the instructions you need.

With a wine making kit you get the juice concentrate and so you can prepare the exact type of wine that is preferred for each occasion. There are wine label kits so you can label your wine too with your own brand.

Your Appreciation Of Wine Making Will Deepen

As with most things, the more you learn about a subject the more you appreciate the complexities of that subject. This applies to wine making too. Homemade wine making will allow you to learn about the process of making wine and why it is a lifelong passion of the professional wine maker.

When you do purchase a bottle of wine from the local bottle shop, no longer will you just select that bottle you are used to, you will read labels more carefully and understand more when it says about the peppery, fruity, robust, rounded, soft and many other descriptions of the wine. No more will you just pick the bottle from the shelf, pay for it, take it home and drink it. You will be a wine expert and will compare those bought wines with your own and you may be surprised at how much you prefer your own vintage.

You Will Also Reap The Financial Benefits

The wine connoisseurs will have you believe that the best wines are the most expensive but this is not always the case as a few 'masked tests' have revealed. But generally speaking the more expensive the wine, the better the taste. That doesn't mean to say that your homemade wine making cannot produce some excellent tasting wines. Your initial outlay for your homemade wine making kit will cost you a few dollars, but once set up you only need to purchase the ingredients to make new batches.

A wine making kit contains the following

Complete Winemaking Equipment Kit Includes primary fermenter with cover, and glass secondary fermenter, hydrometer, stopper and fermentation lock, carboy handle,

Autosiphon and siphon tubing, bottlefiller, sterilizer, brushes, corker, corks and reference book.

Recommended additional equipment not included, Stirring spoon and degasser.This kit comes in three, five or six gallon sizes.

The Ingredients Kit

This kit includes all basic ingredients needed for Fruitwine, or conventional winemaking. Consists of Acid Testing Kit, Yeast, Acid Blend, Yeast Nutrient, Campden Tablets, Bentonite, Pectic Enzyme and Tannin.

Complete Winemaking Equipment Kit and the Winemaking Ingredients Kit will cost you between $120 and $140, so that would be your initial outlay and the ingredients kit will cost approximately less that $20. So your outlay for the next batches will be around the $20.

So you can see over a relatively short period of time you will be in front financially. Homemade wine making, more that just a hobby, something you will get passionate about and really enjoy doing. Your friends and family will really appreciate your passion too. It is a wonderful learning experience homemade wine making.

HomeMade Wine Making

Wine and beer making at home can be so very rewarding, there are always ways to learn how to make your wine at home even better. If you haven't tried the kits then why not? You can find out more about wine and home beer making here

An Insight Into Wine Making Juice For Great Home Made Wine

When making wine at home, beginning with the grapes may sound fine to start but unless you have a wine press, this may not be realistic. A wine press can be an expensive item to add to your equipment. Now, you may like to go in this direction to get the real feel of the wine making process. You may have even grown your own grapes but if this is not an option, to start your wine making at home then there is a simpler solution and that is wine making juice.

An Easy Way To Get Going With A Variety Of Wine Making Juices

There is a wonderful range of wine making juice, you can literally make type of wine you prefer, reds, whites, the choice is yours. The prices will vary similar to store bought wines. There are also, like all products, quality and reputation to consider. Choose a variety that you know and a brand that has a good reputation..

By starting with a wine making juice, you will find it can be cost effective and will make the process of making your own wine at home much easier. When you purchase juice for wine making, there will be the instructions for getting you started. If all the ingredients you need are not included, where you purchase the wine juice will be able to help you with whatever you require to get your first vintage ready.

Many Varieties Of Wine Juice Available

A benefit of making your own wine from the prepared wine juice is, you can purchase a smaller quantity to see if you like that type of wine. Actually you can try a variety of wine making juices as the process is lessened by not having to press the grapes first. You will end up having a very nice supply of your homemade wines.

Like most things today, the process is made easier for us but sometimes the results can differ. Wine made from fresh juice will have more body, the bouquet and the aging will be better than wines made with a wine kit. When you purchase the wine making juice, this is in concentrated form and does lose a little of the flavor and character of the wine. This is because of the process used to produce the wine juice in this form.

Mostly the wine juice in kit form is made from a combination of the grape juice and a sugar syrup. You can get premium juice, which will contain either fresh grape juice and concentrate or all grape concentrate. All the wine making juice sold in this form goes through the same evaporation process and this is the cause of the change to the flavor and characteristics of the wines.

Home wine making can be so much fun, try out a few different wine types, when you find the ones you like, there are places you can get the premium wine juices. These could be more expensive as they are from some of the top wine regions of the world. You will find the wine produced with these juices will be a much better standard than some of the cheaper varieties.

Home wine making with the concentrated wine juice can get you started so easily and quickly to have a great wine cellar in your home without having to go to the local bottle shop to stock up. Your family and friends will love you for your hobby too.

©2007 CTBaird. Carmel Baird contributes to WineMakingInfo-Online [http://www.winemakinginfo-online.com] a great website dedicated to providing useful information on wine and wine making. Why not visit to find out more about wine making [http://www.winemakinginfo-online.com]

Wine Making Kits - Would You Share This Wine With Friends?

Wine making in small batches for personal consumption has been around as long as wine itself. In the United States, personal wine making was brought over from Europe as a family skill in the 18th and 19th century. Although you can't sell any wine that you produce from home, it's perfectly legal and is in fact a thriving hobby.

Wine making for personal consumption is, in a way, similar to gardening. Growing or producing a product for personal consumption lends a sense of pride, although wine making is much more complex than growing carrots. You'll need special equipment, which years ago was cumbersome and bulky. Now, there are self contained kits which fit neatly into any small space, like the corner of a basement.

Making your first batch of wine is possible in your own home with a wine making starter kit. These kits generally cost $125 to $200 and include everything you need as a fledgling winemaker. You'll receive supplies, gadgets, ingredients, and sealable containers to hold the wine while it ferments.

In a starter kit, included are a couple of air sealable jugs to store the wine, ingredients, corks, and specialty tools. And of course, complete detailed instructions. From opening the box to drinking the wine, the whole process takes about a month. Your ingredients will vary depending upon what type you choose to make.

Process And Results

The process itself is fairly easy, although a bit stop and start. For example, after the first step, basically consisting of mixing ingredients, there's a 24 hour waiting period to allow the ingredients to settle. Then, another cleansing of sediment after 5 or 6 days, followed by the 4 to 6 week fermenting period.

Our first batch was, well, our first batch. Certainly not a masterpiece, but drinkable nonetheless. It was what we'd call a simple red table wine, and we were encouraged enough to try the process again. We learned that wine making is a skill that improves the more you practice.

The next batch yielded better results. We produced an apricot wine, using a recipe modeled after a wine we'd enjoyed on one of our U.S. wine trails travels. We were brave enough to share some of this with friends and family, and were pleasantly surprised that it received positive reviews (and requests for a 2nd glass).

We've basically stayed with fruit wines since then, as we're able to experiment somewhat in terms of how much fruit we add and how it affects the end product. While we still enjoy a good wine purchase, it's been fun to share with people that we're wine makers!

If you have a little patience and enjoy growing things or producing something all your own, consider wine making. We never thought of ourselves as ever being wine makers, but it's been fun and a great topic of conversation. You'll need a willingness to experiment, and a sense of humor for when one of your batches inevitably flops. But, you'll experience a real sense of pride when someone pays compliments to the winemaker!

Jim Hofman is an author and owner of several wine related websites, and a novice wine maker. For more information, be sure to visit Jim's resource site devoted to wine, wine accessories, and Wine Making Kits [http://www.wine101.info]. Cheers!

Wine Making Made Easy

You can start your own wine making right in your own home. Many people make wine in their basements. This practice has been around for many years and continues to grow today with the help of the Internet. Wine making is a hobby for wine enthusiasts who experiment with different types of wine making. If you want to make wine at home, you can buy a kit, or you can do all the work from scratch. All you really need are the bottles, recipe with ingredients and a dark room to store the wine as it ages and ferments.

Ingredients Needed

To try your hand at wine making, you can use a simple recipe with simple ingredients and directions. For your first wine making experience, this should not be too difficult. If you want to make some apple wine, you will need five gallons of apple juice, five pounds of sugar, two tablespoons of yeast nutrient, one-half teaspoon of pectic enzyme, two and one-half tablespoons of acid blend and one teaspoon of wine tannin and one package of yeast as well as a bottle of campden tablets. Now that you have all the ingredients, you are ready to begin wine making.

The Next Steps in Wine Making

The first thing to do is to mix all the ingredients together except for the yeast. You will add five gallons of water to match the five gallons of apple juice. Crush up five campden tablets very finely and add to the mixture. You will then cover the fermenting container with a thin cloth for twenty-four hours.

The next step to wine making is to take off the cloth cover and add the yeast package. You will sprinkle the yeast on the top of the wine and then recover the container with a thin piece of cloth. After about five to seven days, transfer the wine to a new container leaving any sediment behind.

The next step is to add the air lock and fill it with water only half way. Now leave the wine sit for four to six weeks. Once the wine juice has cleared, you can remove any sediment, add five more crushed campden tablets, and add it to the wine. Next, you can bottle the wine into wine bottles.

You have now learned the steps for wine making. Keep in mind that this is one way to make homemade wine, there are however, many more ways to make wine. Everyone has a different way that works.

Chris Jonas is a chef working in Soho, New York. Check out these great Simple Wine Making [http://www.simplewinemaking.com] advice and articles or the more general Wine Making [http://www.simplewinemaking.com] articles and resources.

[http://www.simplewinemaking.com/]

How Good Was Ancient Wine Making?

Evidence of wine making can be found stretching back into history. Wine is believed to have played a prominent role in the civilization of mankind, with the ancient Greeks regarding anyone who did not drink wine as a barbarian.

It is not surprising that throughout history you find evidence of grape growing and the making of wine because as we know it a simple activity that many people now do at home. Recipes are usually simple to follow with some basic equipment combined with a little patience.

But how good was the wine made by these ancient civilizations?

Its is hard for us to be sure exactly what the quality was like or even how it tasted because obviously no samples remain and it is hard to pass on or interpret that information from the evidence we have left to us.

One clue from numerous painted reliefs' and other archeological evidence is that in Ancient Egypt wine was generally consumed, by the king, nobles, and in temple ceremonies by priests, only being provided to the masses on special occasions. This would indicate that wine had a certain prestige.

Another interesting discovery from ancient Egypt is that they labeled the wine with the name of the vintner. Not something we do today, but useful then if the vintner was famous for producing fine wines and moved to another vineyard. It would be a way that the Egyptian wine buyer could continue buying fine wine from a proven producer.

For the Romans wine consumption had an important role in their society being consumed at most meals. They continued to refine wine making that was started by the Greeks and Egyptians exporting and importing wines to and from many parts of their Empire. They introduced vineyards to many of these areas and recorded the different grape varieties and types of soils in an effort to produce higher quality and yields. They recorded these qualities and their preferences for the wines from different regions ranking some high in excellence which is similar to what we do today. They also introduced wooden barrels and glass bottles for storing wine.

During the Dark Ages, vineyards were maintained by the monasteries as a source of communion wine. The production of wine became the art of the monks who developed some of the best vineyards and wines in Europe. It is through this time that wine became an important part of the common man's diet. People of the Shakespearean age enjoyed drinking wine and discussing its virtues and sins with great enthusiasm.

Not much has changed since then except we have such an abundance of great wines to choose from that now practically anyone who wants to try their hand can start to make homemade wine themselves. The desired quality may not happen on the first attempt, but then one can always try again.

Making homemade wine is one of those enjoyable, intoxicating art forms. Very rewarding if you have the patience to do it right. To learn more and gain some detailed information, feel free to visit Making Homemade Wines

Fining Agents For Homemade Wine Making

Fining during wine making is the stage at which clarification takes place. Great wine should be very clear, and without any suspended particles. Most wine makers take great pains to ensure their wine is as clear and particle-free as possible. Fining may also be done to improve the wine's stability or to reduce bitter flavors or off aromas.

The addition of fining agents can take place at different stages wine making. Most of the time fining is done right after the fermentation process. This is done to speed up the process of dead yeasts cells falling out of the wine, and to reduce the particles suspended in the wine.

At times, finings are also added a week or so before bottling. This will put a final polish on your wine, and can alter the wine's color or aroma slightly.

Over the years, various substances have been used in an effort to try to clarify wine. Some of the more well-known ones are ox blood, gelatin made from the hooves of horses, some types of seaweed, clay, and egg whites.

One of the most commonly used fining agents these days is called Bentonite. It is used as a general purpose wine clarifier and is very effective in getting dead yeast cells to drop out of the wine. Bentonite can also reduce the harshness of a wine's aroma. It's a type of clay from Wyoming that has a negative electrical charge associated with it. When mixed with your wine it swells a great deal and attracts positively charged particles in your wine. When the matter gets heavy enough it drops to the bottom of your fermenting vessel, and the wine can be safely racked away from the "finings". Bentonite will come with complete instructions for its use, but basically you will hydrate the clay in warm water before adding it to your wine.

Another popular fining agent is Isinglass. This is not used the same way as Bentonite, but is rather used at the end of your wine's aging process or even right before bottling, to add a final polish to an already clear wine. Isinglass is a thick liquid that needs to be mixed thoroughly into your wine.

Fining is an important part of the wine making process. Done right, it can enhance the appearance, stability and aroma and flavor of your wine.

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Wine Making in America

When Europeans first came to settle on the eastern shore of the Americas, they were duly impressed by the wealth of grapevines that covered the land. One could imagine that this abundance signaled wealth and prosperity, both for consumption and for the export value of the raw product and its wine. Unfortunately, they found that the wine made from the native North American grapes did not approach the quality of what they were used to in Europe. The common Vitis labrusca had a pungent or "foxy" flavor (hence the common name fox grape), which made the wine less than pleasing to their palates. Furthermore, although the native grapes flourished, all the grape plants that were brought from Europe and planted in the New World died. Records showed that Thomas Jefferson, Benjamin Franklin, and numerous lesser-known growers tried and failed to grow European grapes repeatedly, until they finally gave up.

By the mid-1800s, more palatable grapes for eating and wine making, such as Vitis labrusca 'Catawba', were found among the natives. In the latter quarter of the nineteenth century, grapevines were shipped from North America to France, en event that was to have a lasting effect on the world grape industry. These rooted American grapevines most likely were imported to France because they were resistant to powdery mildew, a problematic fungal disease on both continents. However, the imported vines were infested with the grape phylloxera, a root louse, and the entire French wine industry was decimated within a few years. The presence of this pest also explains why the European vines were not able to survive in the Americas. The native grapes, which had co-evolved with the vermin, had developed resistance to phylloxera, but the unsuspecting European plants were like lambs brought to the slaughter. Though it was known at the time that the European grapevines could be grafted onto resistant rootstocks, the French growers felt that the rootstock imparted bad flavors to the wine, and they embarked on a massive effort to marry the high quality of the European wine grape with the insect and disease resistance of the American grape through hybridizing. Many North American species were used in this effort, but the one that proved most useful was V. riparia, the riverbank grape. The breeding work had an unforeseen benefit as well: though they are relatively cold tender, the European grapevines are able to produce crops from adventitious buds, so if the flowers are killed by frost, all is not lost. Today, many of the minor wine-growing regions in the United States depend on the cultivars that resulted from the hybridization of the European and American grapes. As a group, they are called the French-American hybrids, and the hybridization efforts continue to this day.

The West Coast of the Americas has a completely different viticultural history. In the early 1500s, the Spanish conquistadors brought viticulture from Spain. The success of the New World planting was so great, however, that the Spanish crown forbid the planting of new vineyards in 1595 because it feared that the competition from this new land would be too great. In the late 1600s and 1700s, grapevines traveled with the missions being established up the coast of what is now California. The principal purpose of these vineyards was to produce wine for the church, but in the early nineteenth century, as more ships frequented California ports, wine came to be increasingly in demand. The first commercial planting of vines in California was established in the early 1800s, in the Los Angeles area. Subsequently, more vineyards were planted, and by the late 1850s, California grape growing was a substantial industry. The discovery of gold in northern California elicited an increase in the consumption of grapes and wine, and an unprecedented expansion of the wine industry ensued in the area. Though growers had been importing European grape varieties all along, in 1862 Colonel Agoston Haraszthy was commissioned by the California governor to go to Europe and bring back the grape varieties best suited for California, as well as knowledge about grape culture from the established European wine makers. This marked the beginning of a new industry, based primarily on the best wine grapes of Europe.

The California wine industry experienced many booms and busts throughout its history, but perhaps the most notorious was the bust brought about by Prohibition. In the years leading up to Prohibition, from 1912 to 1919, commercial wine production dropped by almost one-half, until it ceased altogether with the ratification of the Eighteenth Amendment to the Constitution, prohibiting the production and sale of all alcoholic beverages in the United States. In California, however, the reality was that instead of decimating the industry, Prohibition moved wine making into the basements and bathrooms of private homes, and bootleggers paid top prices for fresh grapes. Shipment of grapes out of state also increased, and the higher prices for the illegal end-product resulted in the planting of many new vineyards. The largest acreage in the history of California, 648,000 acres, was reached in 1927, still 6 years before Prohibition was repealed. Unfortunately, this expansion was dominated by money-seeking businessmen who knew little about grapes, which brought instability to the industry in spite of the prosperity. The repeal of Prohibition in 1933 brought some sanity back to the growing of wine grapes in the region, but it was many years before the inappropriate cultivars were culled out, the dilapidated vineyards replaced, and the industry regained solid footing.

Unlike in California, the wine industries in the rest of the country were decimated by Prohibition, although they had recovered in the last few decades. Today, local wineries can be found in most of the 50 United States as a result of winery acts passed in the 1970s and'80s.

An important development of the last century in the international wine industry is the protocols established by the major wine-producing nations of Western Europe regarding the naming of wines. The term "Chablis," for example, is set aside to denote wines made from a particular cultivar (Vitis vinifera 'Chardonnay') and from a particular region in France (Burgundy). To this day, if you purchase a French wine labeled "Chablis", it must meet the stringent, government-controlled standards that seek to ensure reliably consistent, good to excellent wines with particular definable characteristics. The United States was not party to this agreement, a situation that has led to great confusion in wines and wine labeling. Specifically, American wine makers do not follow the rules of nomenclature, and so terms such as 'Chablis" or "Burgundy" are used generically rather than in reference to the specific French wine types

Olby Beauchard is a grape growing expert. He is also a contributing author to [http://www.grapegrowingformula.com]. This site provides information and tips on grape growing and wine making. Want to learn more about how to grow grape? Visit my website [http://www.grapegrowingformula.com/wine-making/] for helpful tips and information on growing, planting, and caring for your own grapes.

Wine Making Equipment for Making Wine At Home

Many people are making wine at home now, not leaving it to the prestigious wineries located all over the world. The wine making hobby can be enjoyed by people who live everywhere, not just the more popular wine making areas like France, Italy or even California. Sometimes the hobby can get out of hand and become a small home based business.

Although wine making equipment can be costly, local supply stores and even the internet make finding the equipment easy. Check that the quality of the wine making equipment is high enough to make wine that you can drink safely. Dangerous chemicals and bacteria have several chances to enter your wine.

The most basic piece of equipment you will need is a glass jug, known as a Carboy, that is available in many different sizes. Bungs, or rubber stoppers, are the next most important piece of wine making equipment. The rubber stoppers will have the airlocks installed in them after they have holes drilled in them. The Carboy and the bung must fit together.

Oxygen can adversely affect the taste of the wine. The airlock prevents oxygen from entering the wine. Any oxygen that enters the wine can start oxidizing and ruin the taste of the wine you are making.

During the fermentation process the sugar amount of the wine to test it's sweetness. A Hydrometer tube is the piece of wine making equipment that performs this test. It resembles a large thermometer with a strip of paper with numbers on it inside the tube of glass.

The most recognized piece of wine making equipment is the "Wine Thief". The Wine Thief is the plastic or glass sampling tubes that you see winemakers use when testing the wine. You hold your finger over the end, like a child with a soda and a straw, to make a vacuum seal to draw the sample of wine for tasting

Plastic buckets is common equipment when making wine at home. Not many people can afford the large oak barrels that are used by the large wineries. When deciding what size bucket to get make sure it is large enough to hold all the foam that the fermentation process creates.

One of the final pieces of wine making equipment is the hose used to "rack" the wine. Racking the wine is just the official name for siphoning the wine from one container to another. A siphoning hose is used for this step.

Dennis Graves is a well known internet author. He has covered various topics in a wide range of areas. You can find more information about wine making equipment by visiting his new website http://www.winemakingequipment.info He has also started a new information service at [http://www.mr-know-it-all.net/]

Wine Making - The Basics Facts Of Wine making

Wine making as the products of human creativity has been used over a period of more than four thousand years.

A sparkling wine that's available in the Champagne region of France it is named after that region.Other regions in France that are into making good wine are Bordeaux and Burgundy. The finest Italian wines come from Tuscany, while the best American wines come from California.

when wine is produced the grapes are squashed and the juice taken out.The juice has yeast and sugar. The yeast ferments the sugar and bit by bit alcohol is produced. Nevertheless, the alcohol regularly is the same and every wine has its own flavor. This also depends on the type of grape used and the circumstances in which fermentation occurs.

Cabernet Sauvignon and Pinot Noir grapes make full, rich red wines. Merlot grapes produce lighter, softer red wines. Chardonnay and Sauvignon Blanc grapes make white wines.

As a practice in wine making, good wines generally have their year of production on the bottle. This is called the vintage. Some years produce better wines than others.

Almost all the red wines get better in quality as they get older, some even as long as ten years. And most of the red wines are not made available until about two years after they were made. Although, most white wines do not improve in quality with aging except champagne and sweet dessert wines.

Wines can be enjoyed like any other drink, but they are often consumed with a meal. For full flavored meats such as beef choose a full red wine, like a Zinfandel, Cabernet or Syrah.

For lighter meat like pork or lamb a medium bodied red like a Merlot or Pinot Noir is usually a good choice.

Chicken and fish are in general accompanied by white wine like Chardonnay. This wine will also go with a non-meat dish, as would a Zinfandel or Riesling.

White and sparkling wines are best served when they are cold. A red wine should be served when it is slightly below room temperature. Both wines are best left to stand before opening. Some red wines have sediment which should stay at the bottom of the bottle, and an agitated sparkling wine is often much too eager to leave the bottle.

White wine can be served immediately after removing the cork, but a red wine gain from 'breathing'

for about thirty minutes after the bottle is opened. For optimum result cautiously pour the red wine into another container. This make allowance for greater surface area of the wine to breathe and leave the deposit behind in the bottle. If you do not have a decanter, pour half a glass from the bottle and let both stand for 15 to 30 minutes before serving.

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Traditional Red Wine Making (Part 1)

Traditional wine making requires a different fermentation system than modern wine making. In the traditional wine making the stalks are usually part of the fermentation and for richer wine, grapes are being crushed as opposed to be left whole.

For Beaujolais wines the grapes are not crushed but instead go through what is called a carbonic maceration which involves a fermentation that takes place within the grape itself. Because of this process, Beaujolais can be enjoyed as soon as it comes out of the wine making process, but don't age very well.

Pinot Noir is usually made using both processes of crushed and un-crushed grapes giving it a rich and fruity taste.

Once the grapes are in the vat, the next most important element in the fermentation process is the temperature which needs to be more elevated if natural grape yeast is used for fermentation. However, the temperature can't go above 90°F (33°C) which would turn the wine in veritable vinegar. If the temperature is kept to low the wine would then be flavorless. The right temperature is key to make the perfect wine.

During fermentation, if not checked a "cap" will form on the surface of the vats. In the old days this was kept in check by winemakers literally swimming in the wine. Today it is done mechanically with a wooden paddle or sprinklers.

Wine fermentation takes a week or two depending on the grapes to transform sugars into alcohol. The sugar and alcohol levels will then be checked and inadequacies corrected until the wine is perfect.

While some wine sugars and alcohol levels have been checked, the winemaker will either add sugar or tartanic acid in the wine depending on local regulations.

At this time what is called liquid and solids are still mixed together. Then the liquid (wine) called the free-run is drawn off and separated from the solids (grapes) which will go into a press. It will then be called press wine.

Press wine is intensely colored and flavored and will be blended with the free-run. However, usually not all the press-wine is used because if too much is blended to the free-run the final wine will be too tannic.

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Wine Making For Beginners

If you are interested in wine making then you need to do a little homework before you get started. Wine making is not something that you can just plunge into and learn along the way, you need to do some research so that you know that you are not missing any vital wine making steps or processes. If you do miss these wine making your wine could very well turn out tasting like anything but wine.

Wine making is a something fun that you can do in your spare time and at the end you will have a glorious result. Wine making is something that people tend to get hooked on because the very first batch is not usually perfect, it may taste delicious but it will not be perfect. As you learn about wine making and as you get the wine making experience behind you your wine will get better and better. You will undoubtedly pick up tips and tricks to help you improve your wine making capabilities.

The vast majority of wines use the grape for a reasons and this is because this little grape will have so many of the necessary wine ingredients already infused into it. In wine making your success is going to be all about balance and chemicals and the grape has many of the necessary chemicals in it already.

For good and delicious wine making you need to have the right balance of sugar, tannin, moisture and nutrients, well, it just so happens that the grape fits the bill to perfection. This allows for the grape to ferment, as it needs to for successful wine making. Choosing the right grape is only the beginning of your wine making journey though.

There are many different grapes that you can use and when you get more skilled at wine making you might want to add a little of some other fruits to the mix to give your wine some extra depth and flavoring. Read about the different grapes that can be used in wine making and how they affect the outcome of the wine making process. You know what kind of wine you like so this will give you an idea of which direction to take your wine making in.

Wine making is fun, remember that as you go along. If you make any mistakes along the wine making way don't worry about it, you are new and it happens to everyone once and awhile.

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Basic Wine Making Equipment

Wines are usually made in prestigious wineries. However, there are many people who make homemade wines both as a hobby and a small scale business.

The most expensive aspect in this hobby is the wine making equipment. Most of the wine making equipment is readily available and can be reused except for corks. One must remember, however, to purchase and use only food grade equipment. Non-food grade materials can be dangerous as toxic chemicals might seep into the wine during the fermentation process.

Here is a rundown of the most basic wine making equipment. First, one must have a carboy. A carboy is just a glass jug. They come in one gallon to six gallon sizes.

Bungs are also essential wine making equipment. They are rubber stoppers with holes drilled in the middle. The holes are where airlocks are attached. Bungs come in various sizes and are fitted into the mouth of the carboy.

Also, there are airlocks that prevent oxidation. Oxidation breaks down the wine due to over exposure to oxygen. Airlocks prevent this by creating a valve that keeps the air from entering the carboy while keeping carbon dioxide inside.

A hydrometer tube is another important wine making equipment. This piece of equipment looks like a 12 inch thermometer with a piece of paper stuck inside with numbers printed on it. This is used to measure the amount of sugar before, during and after the fermentation.

A wine thief is also an important piece of wine making equipment. It is a tube made out of glass or plastic with holes at the end. It is used to take out small amounts of wine from a container. To use it, the person simply dips it into the wine and covers one hole with the thumb. When he extracts the tube, the air vacuum holds the wine in the tube until the thumb is taken off the hole.

A food grade bucket is also needed for wine making. Large quantities of wine can be poured in the bucket. A three or five gallon bucket is an excellent choice. Also, fermenting the wine can create a lot of foam. It would be good to have a bucket large enough to hold the wine and the foam.

Lastly, the winemaker would need a food grade hose that is used for racking. Racking is transferring wine from one container to another. This is done by siphoning the wine via the food grade hose.

All these wine making equipment are available in wine stores. If not, they can be ordered through the internet.

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History of Wine Making

The history of wine can be classified into four periods: the Ancient Times, the Dark Ages, the New World and the Modern Days.

Ancient Times

Mesopotamia. Evidence of grape cultivation and wine production were found dating as far back as 6000BC.

Egypt. Egyptians made first records of grape harvest and wine making. Wine was regarded a measurement of one's social status and is used for religious rituals.

Greece. Wine played an important part in the religion of ancient Greece particularly attributed to the god Dionysus. It was also regarded as a social drink for the privileged upper class.

Rome. Wine making technology was considerably improved and wine became available even to the common people.

China. The Chinese initially used wild grapes for their wine, cultivation of grapes didn't start until after Zhang Qian's exploration to Western Kingdoms where he acquired vines. Wine from grapes was therefore considered exotic and were reserved only for the Emperor's consumption.

Dark Ages

Following the decline of Rome, the Christian Church became a staunch supporter of wine necessary for celebration of the Catholic Mass while Muslim chemists pioneered the distillation of wine for medicinal purposes.

Middle East. Alcoholic drinks were prohibited, but alcohol production particularly wine, have thrived. Egyptian Jews leased vineyards from the Fatimid and Mamluk governments and produced wine for sacramental and medicinal use. Christian monasteries in Levant and Iraq cultivated grapes and distributed their vintages to taverns located inside monastery grounds. Zoroastrians in Persia and Central Asia also engaged in wine production, though not much is known regarding their wine trade. However, they are known for their taverns.

Medieval Europe. Benedictine monks were one of the largest producers of wine in France and Germany, followed closely by the Cistercians. The Templar, and Carmelite orders were also notable wine producers.

New World

New World wines came to a rise and challenged Old World wines in the 19th century.

The Americas. Grapes were brought to what is now known as Latin America by Spanish conquistadores. Succeeding waves of immigrants imported grapes from France, Italy and Germany.

American wine was generally looked upon as inferior to European product until the latter half of the 20th century; New World wine began to gain respect after a surprising showing at the 1976Paris Wine tasting.

Australia, New Zealand and South Africa. Until late in the 20th century, Australia exported mostly to the United Kingdom while New Zealand kept most of its wine internally and South Africa was closed off to much of the world market due to apartheid.

Modern Days

Wine making developed greatly in terms of scientific background therefore allowing a lot of things that were once impossible to be accomplished. Wine makers of this day are now able to gain total control of every stage in wine making. The challenge now for wine makers is to produce wine for a much larger market without losing the character and distinct flavor of their wines. More and more countries are now producing more varieties of wine and advances in technology will ensure that such trend will continue.

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Wine Making Can Start Out as a Hobby, But Watch Out! It Can End Up as a Passion!

The wonderful tasting wines of today are mainly due to the passions of normal people who started out making wine as a hobby.

This may be surprising but, making good tasting wine is easier than trying to cook a tasty meal, whilst the meal may take a much shorter time to cook, not every one may be pleased and excited in the delights of your new found skills.

How ever with a little care and a some simple steps that any one can follow you can make a batch of wine that will bring out the "cockles of the hearts" in your visitors.

I have watched visitors drink some home made wine during and after a meal, and the taste of home made wine is so much superior to the common table wine you buy from the stores, it is simple, there are no preservatives and the taste is exquisite leaving your guests with a red glow on their cheeks.

The steps to making red wine are so simple that you often feel like the compliments should go to nature and not to the wine maker.

All you need is a few 20-liter plastic (or wood coopers) containers that you can seal them with a lid.

A home made press to press the wine grapes (some still use their bare feet, don't worry the fermentation takes care of any germs)

You also need a few bits and pieces to pour the wine "juice" into the big containers.

The grapes are of course very important and you have to make sure you DON'T purchase common table grapes, but you must purchase "wine grapes".

This is best done at the right time of the year (usually around Autumn if you are in Australia) and when the grape harvest is on.

If you like getting up early nothing beats a visit to the big fruit markets, this is not only where you can get your wine grapes but you also get to see what others are buying, you can also buy and see some wine making equipment and get a few "home" tips from some of the old professionals, they are only too ready and eager to part with their "secrets".

Make sure the grapes are not dry and that they are very dark burgundy color (for red wine) and are a yellowish to very light brown, or saffron color for (white wine) 8 boxes of wine will yield about 70 liters of "wine" juice and once this is done all you have to do is just wait for the fermentation process to finish.

Fermentation takes about 30 to 40 days and then you should be right for bottling.

Once this is done, you and your visitors can sit back and relax and enjoy a nice warm winter with some beautiful homemade wine.

Tony Saff is a freelance writer and loves to dabble in areas of crafts and other interests, such as internet marketing, commerce, software development and other diverse fields of interest.

How to make homemade wine-10 reasons can fail the fermentation

When you are learning how to make homemade wine, one very important thing you will want to avoid is fermentation failure. It is important to recognize the many causes of failure, so that you are able to avoid them before they ruin your wine. This list will show you why you are experiencing slow or non-consistent fermentation of your wine products.
1. Your Fermentation temperature may be too hot or too cold. The yeast in your liquid is better suited for its job if the temperature is between 70 and 75 degrees Fahrenheit, with approximately 72 degrees being the ideal temperature. If the fermentation is too cool it may become sluggish and ferment very slowly or it may not ferment at all. Fermentations that are too warm may allow microorganisms to grow in your wine causing it to have a bad flavor or may even cause the wine to be spoiled. In order to combat this problem you may want to buy a floating thermometer and put it into your fermentation vessel, that way you can watch it and be sure that you are maintaining the proper temperature for your wine.
2. Another reason for fermentation failure is adding to much sugar. Yeast needs sugar to produce the alcohol that you will need to make your wine, but sometime you may add too much causing adverse affects that you do not want when you are making your wine. When your sugar level is too high, the sugar will stop being a food source for your yeast and instead will prevent the ability of the yeast to produce the alcohol needed to make wine. Before you add any sugar you will want to know just how much sugar your fruit already has. Keeping in mind that the sugar level may be different in one fruit than it is in another. Some grapes need no additional sugar in order to make the 10% to 13% needed to make a good amount of alcohol. However in the instance of berry wines you may need to add a significant amount of sugar in order to get to the acceptable levels. It is recommended that you use a hydrometer to help you control the level of sugar you have in your must. It will tell you how much sugar you currently have as well as how much you sill need in order to reach the desirable level of alcohol.
3. The next reason for the failure of your fermentation is improper yeast starting methods. You will find that some packets of yeast will tell you to hydrate your yeast in warm water for a few minute before adding it to your must. The only problem with this is that some winemakers will use water that is too warm or they may leave it in the water too long. Some of the yeast packets will tell you to make the temperature of the water between 95 and 105 degrees Fahrenheit; however it is much better to use 90 degrees instead, because at the recommended temperature for every minute you leave the yeast in the water some of the yeast cells will die. If the water is even a little bit warmer, say 110 to 115 Fahrenheit, you will find that your yeast cells are dying even faster. This means that if your water is too hot or you leave it in the water to long, your cell count will be to low to support good fermentation.
4. Another reason for fermentation failure is sealing up your fermenter to quickly after you add the sulfites. Many wine making recipes call for you to use sulfites such a Campden tablets, you will be instructed to add them to your juice at least 24 hours before you add any yeast in order to sterilize your juices. The sulfites are used to destroy unwanted contaminates including molds and wild yeasts. The process usually takes about 18 to 24 hours of allowing sulfite gases to dissipate in to the air. After the 24 hour period you can then add your wine yeast. However, if your wine is sealed or air locked, the sulfite gases will not be released into the air, and when the yeast is added, it is most likely to be destroyed.
5. Using an airlock during the primary fermentation phase is another reason for failing in the fermentation process. In the primary fermentation stage, during the first few days, yeast uses most of its energy reproducing. The yeast will need to multiply itself to over 100 times the amount of yeast you put into the must. In order for this to occur the yeast must have air. If you use an airlock, it will keep the air out, depriving yeast of the much needed air and slowing down the reproduction. Instead of using the airlock, you should use a thin towel, or a cheese cloth. This allows air to get in and keeps out unwanted germs and bugs that could invade your must.
6. The next problem that could affect fermentation is a lack of much needed nutrients. Having the right amount of nutrients is very important to the success of the fermentation process. Without these nutrients, your yeast may have a problem performing as they should. This may because the fermentation process to be slow and sometimes even cause it to stop before it can complete its mission. When you are making wine from juices, you will be able to easily meet the nutritional needs of the yeast by simply adding yeast nutrients to the must.
7. Another interesting but sometimes unbelievable phenomenon is that your fermentation is already done. In most wine making recipes you were told that fermentation takes as much as six weeks to complete. However, in reality, the process can be done in about 7 days. Many new wine makers will think something is wrong and may add sugar thinking they need to restart the fermentation; however time does not govern the amount of alcohol that is made. The best way to tell if your fermentation was done correctly is to use the proper wine making equipment such as a hydrometer to test your levels and if the answer is 0.998 or less on the Specific Gravity Scale, it means that fermentation has been successful.
8. Another problem that may occur is that the yeast has reached its limits, many times musts that are in the beginning stages of fermentation, have problems when the yeast reaches it limits. As alcohol levels rise, you will notice that the process slows down. It does this because alcohol is a preservative (something that helps something perishable stay in the state it is in) which means that alcohol may very well be the reason that the wine is no longer fermenting, Another thing is fermentation may shut down no matter how much sugar is still in your must. It is very possible to still have quite a bit of sugar that could render you wine undrinkable. You will need to use your hydrometer to find out how much sugar is needed to produce the 12% to 13% of alcohol content that your wine needs.
9. Another fermentation hindrance may be the use of distilled water, using distilled water can cause you to have problems for 2 reasons. First distilled water has had all of the excess oxygen removed from it, and the second is that there are no minerals present in distilled water. Both conditions have a way of slowing down the fermentation process. While it is okay to use bottled water, distilled water can be a hindrance to the fermentation of your wine. During the fermentation process, the yeast will need all of the oxygen it can get to reproduce itself. If the yeast doesn't get an adequate amount of oxygen, the fermentation of the wine may be slow and take additional time to complete the process. Having no minerals causes adverse effects in the fermentation as well. Minerals play an important part in providing the much needed nutritional requirement to the yeast and giving it the boost it needs to consume the sugar and make enough alcohol for great wines. If you are going to use bottled water be sure they say spring water or mineral water before purchasing them.
10. Sometimes you may find that your wine is not fermenting at a normal rate, it is either very slow or not fermenting at all. This problem comes from the fact that the yeast is too old. Another thing to remember is that a portion of the yeast cells die every day depending on the temperature where they are kept. At 80 degrees Fahrenheit your yeast will die very quickly, at room temperature it may die within a year, refrigerated yeast lasts about 2 years. Also know that yeast will not be usable forever and could be one of the reasons for your fermentation process not starting properly.
When learning how to make homemade wine you will want to learn everything there is to know about the process, but most importantly you will want to know what can affect the quality of your wine, because it makes the difference between good wines and great wines.



By: Randy T. Slabey
Copyright 2008 RTS Leasing, LLC
For more free how to make wine articles and a free e-course, please visit the author's website at http://www.howtomakehomemadewine.info or visit the author's wine making equipment website at http://www.winemakingequipment.biz