Beginner: Winemaking

[jvs]

You can probably get into the Hobby for around $10 by going to Flea Markets or Yard Sales for some supplies.

The Basics would be:

1.  A 1 Gallon Glass Jug.  (Preferably a Juice Jug not a Vinegar Jug, which are easily found at Flea Mkts or Yard Sales).  10 cents to $1 each.

2.  A 5 Pound Bag of Sugar.   $1.69  (Use 3 pounds per Gallon).

3.  A packet of Dry Yeast     3 for $1.39  

4.  At least 6 feet of NEW Aquarium Tubing for Syphoning.   (Up to 20 cents a foot).

5.  A Fermentation Lock or Large Balloon.  (Fermentation Locks are readily available on the Internet or Wine Hobby Stores).   Up to $2.

6.  Fresh Berry's when in Season or Frozen Juice.

7.  Empty Quart Bottles or Mason Jars.


This list does not include any supplies that the hard core winemaker uses,  nor is it expensive, it is only a starting point for anyone who is thinking about trying it.  The cheapest way to start is by using Frozen Juice but Fresh Fruit's and Berry's produce a better product, IMO.

If you try it and like it, supply costs can add up quickly.  The good news is that it's a once and done expense for hardware, so buying over time is a good way to accumulate the things you want.  For example, a Glass jug can be used for many years, so even if you paid $1 for a jug, it can be used over and over.  The same will be true for any supply except consumables, like yeast etc.  Over the last month I have found 5 more one gallon jugs without really searching for them, which now brings me up to 40 or so.

The older 5 gallon glass water jugs can also be found.  They run from $5 to $20 each, depending on your local market.    I use 5 gallon jugs (Carboys) when the berry crop is having a good year, other than that I mostly use 1 gallon jugs, mostly because wild berrys don't usually come in all at once.   I do not own anything bigger than 5 gallon.

Wine Yeast is probably better than Bakers Yeast for Winemaking but Bakers Yeast can be used by a beginner for trial purposes and will usually give you an Alcohol content in excess of what natural fermentation produces.

The finished product should sit at least a year, which means it should remain unopened until it is about one year after you started the process.  Homemade wine that is "Green" can sometimes give you a bad taste for the hobby.

If you have any questions or comments.........feel free to put them here or start a new thread.

[jvs]

TM7,

I am all in favor of using Wine Yeasts.  There is probably nothing better than using the correct yeast for the wine you are making.  As a beginner wine maker though, bakers yeast is ok to use until a little more experienced.  It only gets better.   Some wine yeast strains have the ability to  provide 16% alcohol or better.  Being Scientific about it comes later.  I sometimes use a wine yeast that has an 18% tolerance for alcohol......Hot Stuff   :-)   Some people tell me that 6 ounces makes them numb and twelve ounces makes them sleep real good.

For the beginner, bakers yeast is alot more accessible without going to extremes and it will give you between 11 and 14% content.   Unless you live close to a Wine Hobby shop, a packet of yeast from the Supermarket will do, and since one packet will do about 5 gallons, it is cheap.   Buying Wine Yeast on the internet is rarely cost effectve with the minimum purchase requirement and shipping.

I prefer to use the specialized Wine Yeasts but if I don't feel like making a half hour trip to the hobby shop for the proper yeast I use Bakers Dry Yeast.  Also, some people don't like real strong wines.  Starting a hobby like wine making leaves plenty of room for experimenting and tinkering.

If anyone is thinking about starting and buying the supplies at a Wine Hobby shop, then a proper Fermentation Lock is just as important as the  yeast.  Oxygen is your enemy.  

What kinds of wine do yo make TM?  I strongly suggest you try Red Raspberry.  I know many people who don't like anything about Raspberry's until they try my Red Raspberry Wine, then I can rarely make enough of it.  Even people who don't necessarily care for Wine like Red Raspberry Wine.   Blackberry is another popular one, so is Sour Cherry and Cranberry.  I generally make Dessert Wines or 'sippers' unless I make Dandelion.

[jvs]

I haven't tried making Apple Wine since I first started the hobby.  It was my first attempt....which didn't turn out too good back then.  Last year I was thinking about trying to make Apple again, this time with Granny Smith Apples.  I think the tartiness will do well in a homemade wine.  Using Champagne Yeast with Granny Smiths' would produce Secondary Fermentation for a 'Spritzer'.

As for the Raspberry's.  Like I related earlier, I know plenty of people who don't care for Raspberrys.  But I have yet to find anyone who doesn't like Raspberry Wine.  It got to the point that I had to buy frozen Raspberrys at the supermarket in order to make enough wine.  I have made it both with and without the bubbles.

Right now I'm waiting for the Wild Blackberrys and Elderberrys to come in.

[clodbuster]

jvs  I just moved to sw Iowa where elderberries are plentiful and I once had the most delicious wine made from them by a Kansas winery.  It was lightly sweet not syrupy?  Anyway have you or anyone here had experience with elders and how can I avoid having it come out too sweet?

[jvs]

Elderberry Wine is one of the very best Wines you can make from either wild or propagated Berrys.  They also produce a terrific Jelly.

Your question about 'syrupy' wine can be a complicated question.  Basically, a thick wine has faults.  In other words, something went wrong in the process.  

On the other hand, if your question relates to the natural sweetness of a homemade wine then you can add other fruits in the beginning, such as Lemons and/or Oranges, and make a Sanghria.  Also, different wine yeasts will produce different wines.  Some wine yeasts are made for a Dessert wine while others will produce a much dryer wine.   Wine yeasts have a limited tolerance for Acidic and Alcohol content, which is where you must be careful if you add other fruits.  A yeast will keep producing alcohol until it basically sterilizes itself out of existance.  

Elderberrys are already rich in Vitamin C.  Starting off with an acid content too high will mostly lead to failure, which is what messed me up for years when I tried to make Cranberry wine.

Most Elderberry wines fall into the Dessert Wine catagory.  If you pick the Elderberrys when they are dead ripe, they have the attributes for making such a wine.   If you pick them prior to 'dead ripe' they will produce a more tart and dryer wine.

I had Blueberry wine that went thick on me once.  It came down to a failure in fermentation due to a substandard practice on my part when cleaning my hardware.

Try making your Elderberry wine with Champange yeast or a yeast that has a tolerance for 16 to 18% content.  It will probably give you a much dryer wine....and a much 'hotter' one.


Elderberrys have been looked into closely by the Scientific community.  It is the only Fruit that is Ultra-Violet in color when ripe.  Folklore has the Flowers, Berrys, Bark and Root used as medicine for common maladys.