making Basic Wine at home

Well let me show you how simple it can be.

first there are a few things you are going to need.

Essential

1) 2 x 5 gallon Demijon, or 1 demijon and 6 wine bottles.
2) 4.75 gallon. Grape Juice (Red or White)
3) Yeast
4) Cane Sugar 1kg
5) Air Lock and bung
6) Campden Tablets
7) Hydrometer
8) Wine Sweetener
9) Wine Finings
10)Filter
11)Corks and corker

N.B. This is a basic wine recipe and can be tailored in your own way by adding more ingredients and altering the ammounts of sugar required.

Step 1

Dissolve 1kg of cane sugar in about a pint of grape juice, on the stove.
Put the rest of the grape juice into the demijohn.
Once the sugar has dissolved, add the syrup to the demijon.

If the mixture is hot, allow to cool to just warm.

Add 1 teaspoon of dried yeast

Half fill the airlock with water and place in the bung. Now put this into the demijon.

Mix the mixture well.

Place in a constantly warm area, like an airing cupboard. Every 4 - 6 hours shake up the demijohn for about 12 hours.

Now you can leave the demijon alone in the airing cupboard for anything between a week and 4 weeks, depending on the temperature of the room.

Fermentation has finished when bubles stop coming through the airlock. If you have one you can use a hydrometer to work out the gravity of the wine, which in turn will tell you the alchoholic content.

Once you are happy that fermentation has finished, take the demijon out of the airing cupboard and add 2 crushed campden tablets. and leave to stand for a couple of days.

Now add wine finings as per the instructions on the packet.

Leave for a few days, shaking the demijon aggresively about 2 to 3 times a day.

This will help the finings to get hold of all of the chunks and large particles in the wine, and make them sink to the bottom. after a few days to a week, your wine should be fairly clear.

Now pass the wine through your wine filter, into a clean demijon or bottles.

Cork up and leave for a week beofre drinking.

The wine will get better with age but dont leave more than 18 months, as the wine will start to turn and go off.

enjoy