Making yor own Wine

Alcohol levels | MakingWine From Kits |

1. Sterilise all equipment thoroughly before you start, including your 4.5 litre (1 gallon) jar.	2. Add the grape juice concentrate.	3. Add about 3 litres of cold tap water to the jar.
4. Dissolve the sugar in warm water for most kits (some kits include sugar).	5. Add sugar solution to the concentrate (except kits with sugar included).	6. Add water to top-up to 4.5 litres (1 gallon).
7. Open the packet and add the yeast.	8. Half fill the airlock with water and insert it into the bung to seal the jar.	9. Keep in a warm place 21-24C (70-75F) or use a heating pad or belt.

10. Take hydrometer readings at various stages to check on the remaining sugar level. DRY: 0.990 - 0.996 MEDIUM: 0.996 - 1.009 SWEET: 1.009 - 1.018	11. At the end of fermentation add two crushed Campden tablets with potassium sorbate. Refit the bung and airlock.	12. The wine should be left in a cool place (15C / 60F) to clear. A few days later transfer from the sediment.
13. Some wines will not clear on their own and may well need finings. Follow the instructions supplied with the finings.	14. When clear you can pass the wine through a filter to achieve professional brilliance and transfer into sterilised wine bottles.	15. Fit the corks with a corking tool. To enhance appearance, fit labels and shrink caps.

Alcohol levels

The best way is to take the starting specific gravity, from the finishing specific gravity and divide this by 7.36, i.e. 1080 - 990 = 90 divided by 7.36 =12.23% ABV. The other option is to acquire a Ritchie Vinometer. This is a simple device you can pour a small sample of wine into which will give an ABV reading. It's simple and quite useful as a guide. Price is under £5.

Making Wine with 'Wine Kits' in nine easy steps

These are general steps intended to give you an idea of how simple making your own wine is. You will always need to follow the instructions contained in the wine kit you have selected.

Step One
Select a wine kit available in 1 or 5 gallon sizes.
Step Two
Empty the concentrate into a sterilised fermenting vessel together with the correct amount of cold water.
If your kit contains dried fruit and herbs they should be added at this stage.
Step Three
Dissolve the suger in hot water and add to the fermenting vessel, Making sure that the solution is well mixed.
Note: Not all kits require additional sugar.
Step Four
Add nutrient and wine yeast sachets that come with the kit. Seal the fermentation vessel with an airlock containing water and leave in a warm place to ferment. Gently swirl the vessel once a day for the next two to three days
Step Five
After 4 days add extra water to top up to 1 or 5 gallons.
Step Six
After 2 - 3 weeks test for sweetness. If it is to your liking proceed to the next step. If not to your liking, let fermentation continue and test again after a couple of days.
Step Seven
Stop the fermentation and add the finings to clear the wine.
Step Eight
When wine is clear, Syphon it into another sterilised vessel taking care not to disturb the sediment at the bottom. Remaining gas (Co2) can be expelled by removing the airlock and covering the hole with one finger. Swirl the vessel until all the gas has been expelled.
Gas being given off is denoted by a “fizz” when the finger is removed.
Step Nine
Syphon clear wine into clean sterilised bottles and cork.

Your wine is ready to drink but may have a raw flavour which will disappear if left to mature for 3-4 weeks