Have demijohns, will brew, but what to start with?

[Two_Sheds]

you can use currants... or sultanas

Good point, but they often come coated in veg. oil, so wash them off in dilute washing liquid (Ecover is gentle) first.

i save fruit in ...tubs, freeze it - i can then start wines whenever i want to

Yep, with the bonus that freezing sterilises the fruit so you don't need to dip it in Milton before you use it, and freezing/thawing makes the juice come out easier.
I prefer to make wine in the winter, when there are no fruit flies around.

[Farmer_Gyles]

winemaking in winter can be difficult as you need a good constant temperature to keep the ferment going - i'm lucky as i have several heating tubes - i also have a big wooden unit, like a TV cabinet, and i'll be converting the top half this autumn to use as a wine making cabinet - it'll be insulated and will have heating from two lightbulbs on a thermostat - i'll post photos when i finally get round to doing it

[Two_Sheds]

I manage it OK: the DJs are just in the sitting room with us, so the temp is at least 16c (for the parrot), more like 18c-20c

I have had stuck fermentations, but I think that was down to too-much-sugar rather than a temp. issue

[daviddevantnhisspiritwife]

I tend to avoid winemaking when it is very warm - it's been as high as 26 deg c in the house the other week and that along with fruit flies can spell disaster.

You can get yeasts that are reliable down as low as 11deg C. Lalvin EC-1118 is one (you will see this is supplied in a lot if wine kits). When it is a bit colder, I tend to have a bit more free time in the evenings too as I am not outside bothering my plants.

I'd advise to get and learn how to use a hydrometer, do teabag wine and/or supermarket juice wine like this one:

1L Supermarket White Grape Juice
1L Supermarket Apple juice
700g Sugar (dissolved in hot water)
1tsp Citric acid
1tsp Yeast nutrient
Yeast (Lalvin D47 recommended)
Water to 1 gall.

Makes a nice dry white wine approx 12%, drinkable right after it is completed.

Personally I am itching to get a few kilos of blackberries to make a gallon of wine and several kilos of elderberries to make as much wine as I can (at least 5 gallons please)!!!! I did not get to make any country wines last year and can't wait to do my favourites this year!

[Farmer_Gyles]

I picked 4.5lbs of blackberries at the mother-in-laws yesterday - big fat juicy blackberries - no idea why those ones are ready so much earlier than others, or so much bigger - they're in the freezer - when i get a few more pounds, they'll be in a bucket turning into wine ....

i bottled some of last year's blackberry wine yesterday - one batch seems drinkable, another batch might need a bit longer to mature ....

[Two_Sheds]

I've not had any luck with blackberry wines, they've all been too sharp.

[daviddevantnhisspiritwife]

I have read and taken good advice on Blackberry wine making that can take some of the risk element out of it and give a wine that is drinkable much sooner - For Blackberry wine stick to an initial SG of no more than 1.075.

I live by this (quote from another forum):

It is passé to "add a kilo of sugar, then water to a gallon." It's best to use your hydrometer while adding sugar at the beginning. You can do this in steps; i.e. get your gallon of must ready without sugar. Start adding sugar, stir.... take SG reading.... add more sugar.... stir well.... take SG reading... etc, etc. You are far much better off and more accurate when it's being done this way.

The above applies to ALL fruit wines where you cannot reliably infer the sugar content of the juice and where you know an appropriate target sg for the particular fruit - for example with Elderberry wine I want 13% - 14% and would start out up as high as SG 1.090.

[Shroomy]

One of my favs to make is Mead (honey wine) one of the eaiset to make
Basic form mix 3 1/2lb of honey (99p jars) and bottled water throw it in a demi john put in a spoon of yeast give it a good shake put an airlock on by christmas it will be ready

[Two_Sheds]

... but buy a glass of mead in a bar first, to see if you like it (bleurgh)

[jamesanddee]

i bottled some of last year's blackberry wine yesterday - one batch seems drinkable, another batch might need a bit longer to mature ....

That's todays job. . . .have 10 gallons to bottle of last years blackberry. . . need to make room for this years batch. Just hope I have enough empties!

I've not had any luck with blackberry wines, they've all been too sharp.

I add 1lb honey per gallon of blackberry wine, it takes away any hint of sharpness and provides a deeper vinosity and body to the wine. Also, the longer you leave it - the better. I have a few gallons tucked away that i am leaving till next august before bottling - so it will be at least 2 years old.

[Farmer_Gyles]

That's todays job. . . .have 10 gallons to bottle of last years blackberry. . . need to make room for this years batch. Just hope I have enough empties!

last year's weather was really poor so had a serious shortage of blackberries round here - this year looks much much better - hope i can make room for them all!

I add 1lb honey per gallon of blackberry wine, it takes away any hint of sharpness and provides a deeper vinosity and body to the wine. Also, the longer you leave it - the better. I have a few gallons tucked away that i am leaving till next august before bottling - so it will be at least 2 years old.

that's a lot of honey .... great if you keep bees, but could get expensive if you don't ...
i'm going to try various things like inverting sugar, lower sugar content, glycerine, back-sweetening etc - i might get lucky - if not, i'm happy to shove it away for a couple of years .....

[MrsCordial]

Could someone please answer a q about froth on the top of wine?

I made Ribena wine about two weeks ago and it's had around 1" deep froth on the top for over a week now. I made tea bag wine a couple of days ago, screwing up rather by adding far too much sugar (really wasn't having a good day); it frothed insanely for the first 18 hours, but this morning it had lost every vestige of froth. Both wines are still bubbling away, but I wondered if someone could please explain the significance of the froth and why the two wines have behaved so differently? Thank you

[MrsCordial]

Re the Ribena wine: If I want a still wine, do I wait til the fermentation is over, rack off and bottle? If I wanted a sparkling wine do I do all that, but while the wine is still producing bubbles? Would I put a campden tablet in the DJ either way to prevent explosions? Thank you

[Farmer_Gyles]

Re the Ribena wine: If I want a still wine, do I wait til the fermentation is over, rack off and bottle? If I wanted a sparkling wine do I do all that, but while the wine is still producing bubbles? Would I put a campden tablet in the DJ either way to prevent explosions? Thank you

for all wines, wait till the ferment is finished - use the hydrometer to check the SG is down to say 1.000 or below (0.990 is bone dry, 0.995 is medium dry etc)
for still wines, crush a campden tablet into a clean demijohn then rack your wine into that demijohn
give it a good shake, then add stabiliser
the campden tablet can stun the yeast but doesn't stop the ferment - it's more about preventing oxidisation (i think!) - you need stabiliser to stop the ferment properly (and to prevent a 2nd ferment)

i won't advise on how to make sparkling wines as i never make them - you can google all the info you need - but i will say definitely use champagne bottles as they're stronger (normal wine bottles will explode) or maybe use plastic bottles like old coke / lemonade bottles

[Samurailord]

I wondered if someone could please explain the significance of the froth and why the two wines have behaved so differently? Thank you

Hi

The froth on top of the fermenting liquid is caused by the yeasts doing their thing and producing carbon dioxide as a by product as they make the alcohol.

Some wines froth dramatically, others barely create more than a bubble or two. There is nothing to worry about either way, and you can always tell if a wine has finished fermenting by checking with your hydrometer.

If the reading is below 0.995 you have a very dry wine, at 1.000 it is dry, 1.010 will be medium and 1.020 and above will be sweet.

Andy