Making wine for dummies. I need a step by step recipe to make it please. Any

[Jorge]

suggestions? I live in the middle east and its prohibited here...so, need a simple step by step recipe on how to make it. Please no web links just looking for an old fashioned way to make it.Thanks for your understanding. Cheers

[Pontac]

Instead of copying and pasting a foot of text from someone elses site, let me point you to the one resource you need.

Jack Keller knows everything there is to know about home winemaking, and its all on his site at http://winemaking.jackkeller.net/index.asp

The site looks a bit disorganised, but scroll down and you'll find the basics of winemaking, advanced stuff, fixing problems and more about making wine from grapes and all sorts of fruits. And if by some remote chance you want to know something that's not on the site, just ask him and he'll tell you.

As Jack says "If the Sumerians could do it, you probably can too."

[heartbroken]

Here are 2 recipes that are easy:

Mom's Homemade Wine
Ingredients :
2 x 12oz cans Frozen Grape Juice
4 cup Sugar
1 tsp Dry yeast
Water
1 x Balloon
1 x Glass gallon jug

Method :
Dissolve yeast in 1 cup of warm water. Mix all other ingredients together in the gallon jug. Pour yeast/water mixture into jug. Fill jug halfway full with warm water. Shake well to mix ingredients and disolve sugar.
Fill the jug to the lower neck with water. Put a toy balloon on the neck of the jug. Poke a small hole in the balloon with a needle. Place in an area that will not be disturbed for three weeks. The balloon will inflate from the gas while fermenting. When the balloon starts to deflate the wine is finished. Do not move the jug while fermenting.
This recipe came from my great grand mother in Germany. It was passed on by my grandmother, to mother, then me. I hope that you enjoy it.
It is a little potent for wine!

21-Day Wine
Ingredients :
4 cup Cranapple Juice
4 cup Grape Juice, Canned, Not Frozen
4 cup Sugar
1 whl Yeast Cake
4 cup Distilled Water
1 whl 15 Cent Balloon
ga Jug (Sterilized)

Method :
1. Mix juices and sugar in a large bowl so after the sugar dissolves well it will be easy to funnel into a jug.
2. Dissolve yeast in a little lukewarm water and than add to the jug.
3. Cap the jug with the balloon. (be sure you save the original cap for the jug. You will need it later.)
4. The balloon will gradually expand as the wine "works." Remove the balloon on the 21st day and it's all ready for serving. Suitable to serve with meals.
Be sure to read notes.
NOTES : Helpful hints: Sterilize your jugs well. Measure the yeast accurately and be sure to use lukewarm water to dissolve the yeast. Hot water will kill the action.

[playfulduo69]

I found 2 sets of instructions hopefully one of these will help you.


STAGE #1 - PRIMARY FERMENTATION

1. Add two litres of warm water to the bottom of your sanitized primary fermenter. Stir the water vigorously and slowly add the contents of package #1 (bentonite) onto the surface. Stir for 30 seconds to ensure even dispersal.

2. Secure the neck of the bag into the collar on the top of the box and pour the contents into the primary fermenter with the bentonite solution. Add 4.5 litres of warm water to the bag to rinse out any remaining juice and add it to the fermenter.

3. If your kit contains oak or elderflowers, add them to the primary fermenter now.

4. Top up the fermenter to the 23 litre (6 gallon) mark with cool water. Stir vigorously for 30 seconds.

5. Check specific gravity (with hydrometer). It should read between 1.080 and 1.090.

6. Ensure that the temperature of the juice is between 65-75 degrees. Sprinkle the yeast gently onto the surface and gently stir in.

7. Cover the primary fermenter and place in an area with a temperature of 65-75 degrees. Fermentation should start within 24-48 hours.

STAGE #2 - SECONDARY FERMENTATION
After 5-7 days the specific gravity will be 1.010 or less. You must transfer the wine to a carboy at this time.

1. Carefully siphon wine into a clean, sanitized carboy. Leave the sediment behind. This may leave a space at the top of the carboy. Do not top up at this stage.

2. Attach air-lock and bung to carboy.

3. Leave carboy in fermentation area for a further 10 days.

STAGE #3 - STABILIZING
After 10 days, check your specific gravity. It should be 0.996 or less. Verify a stable gravity by checking again the next day.

1. Disolve the contents of package #2(metabisulphite) and package #3(sorbate) in 1/2 cup of cool water. Add to carboy and stir for 2 minutes to disperse the stabilizers and drive off CO2.

2. Shake contents of package #4(chitosan or isinglass). Carefully cut open the corner of the pouch and pour contents into carboy. Stir for 2 minutes to drive off CO2.

3. Top up carboy to within 2-5 inches of the neck. Allow your wine 8 days to clarify.

STAGE #4 - CLARIFICATION & BOTTLING

1. After 8 days, check your wine for clarity by drawing a small sample into a wine glass and examining it in good light. If it is not completely clear, leave the carboy for another 7 days. Do not bottle cloudy wine, it will not clear in the bottle.

2. Siphon your wine into clean, sanitized bottles and seal with a good quality cork. Leave bottles upright for three days before lying them on their sides.

YOUR WINE WILL BENEFIT GREATLY FROM 3 MONTHS BOTTLE AGE. ENJOY!

--- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- ---

Instructions for making wine from fresh grape juice.

1.) First you need a supplier of wine grapes (if your going to squeeze yourself) or fresh grape juice - These suppliers are only available once a year so make sure you are ready by early September up to end of October to purchase what you want.
If you know your way around the South Phila area, then you know how to get to the food distribution centers between Packer and Pattison Ave.
Two popular suppliers come to mind:

Lorenzo Gatta of Missa Bay Co. Located at (Galloway St. & Packer Ave)
1-800-701-6240
~O R~
Proccacci Bros. Sales Corp. Loacated at (N.E. Corner of Pattison Ave & Lawrence St.)
1-800-523-4616

2.) Add Yeast - NO... YOU CAN'T USE FLIESHMANS BREAD YEAST. It is important to add a good quality yeast and correct type of yeast for the wine you are making. Add 1 packet of yeast for each 5 gallons of juice. Be sure the yeast is not expired, Check the packet for the expiration date.

3.) Add sulfite - Patasium metabisulfite is essential for making sure bad yeast cells do not spoil your wine, it also ensures a healthy activation of the good yeast cells. If you are using pre-squeezed juice as I do, It has already been sulfited at approximately 100ppm, this is a USRDA regulation for shipping and transporting purposes. There is no need to sulfite further after this stage. (My opinion).

4.) Ferment - Your Juice needs to come up to room temperature (if using fresh juices they come in 5 or 6 gal. buckets and are shipped from refrigerated trucks so they are freezing cold).
Store the juice in a larger (sanitary food grade container) and cover with a clean screen or cheese cloth. DO NOT COVER THE PRIMARY FERMENTOR, IT NEEDS TO BREATHE. Fermenting will cause the juice to boil violently this is a natural process of the natural sugars being eaten up by the yeast, so be sure to leave room at the top of container so you don't have any spilling over. Leave in this primary fermentor for 5-7 days, stir vigorously each day at this stage. In 5-7 days the ferment should subside down to a minor fizz.

5.) Rack - This is done by siphoning (with a sanitary food grade tubing, DO NOT USE THE SIPHON FROM THE AQUARIUM OR FROM YOUR GAS TANK!) from the primary fermentor to an empty Carbouy or Demijon. Make sure you discard the sediment from the bottom of the primary fermentor. You must fill this containor all the way just 1/4" below an air stopper, which you must keep attatched to prevent air and also to prevent oxidation. At this stage I always add American White Oak Chips at a rate of 1/2 pound for a 15 gallon batch.
Your wine will stay in this container (with air lock) for 1 month.

6.) Rack again - It would be a good idea to keep different sized carbouys handy because when you rack you will lose a bit of wine from leaving sediment behind, thus you will need smaller jugs and extra air stoppers handy.
Your wine will stay in this container (with air lock) for 3 months.

7.) Rack again - YES...RACK AGAIN. I cannot express the importance of racking. This process will clarify your wine and prevent autolysis or rotting dead yeast cells which will give your wine an off flavour.
Your wine will stay in this container (with air lock) for 3 months.

8.) Stabilize - At this point you will add 1/4 teaspoon of patassium sorbate for each 5 gallons of wine, this will prevent any further fermenting of residual sugar left behind. Using a sterile rod, stir and splash the wine vigorously to break up any carbon dioxide bubbles. Stabilizing is important because if you skip this step you may end up with a fizzy wine or worse that that the carbon dioxide will cause your corks to pop or bottles to explode on your finished wine.
Your wine will stay in this container (with air lock) for 2 weeks.

9.) Bottle - This is the fun, yet time consuming part. Have sanitized bottles ready. Soak your corks in water for about 2 hours or until soft. I use a hand corker for pressing corks.

10.) Avoid the big mistake - The biggest mistake any amateur wine maker will make is stealing a bottle of wine from the vessel to give it a try. WAIT, WAIT, WAIT !!!
If you leave an air gap and don't keep your wine topped up at all times you might as well toss it all away later. An air gap will cause oxidation and your wine will end up having a metal taste. Patience, your wine must mature.

11.) That's it - See you at the Vendemia ! Salute !