2

Comments

When it comes to making wine the most important part of the process other then the eventual drinking is the process of fermentation. (Fermentation happens when the yeast, which is a single cell plant, eats the sugars in the plant extract and its waste produces the alcohol and co2.)

Types of Kits

With the wine making kits out there the most popular are those for use with grape juice or grape juice concentrate as well as any homegrown fruits. Other types of kits are going to include:

• Dessert wines
• Sake
• Other varietals and estate wines

The non-perishables in the kits are reusable; such as, the hydrometer and the fermentation buckets. Your costs will go down as after your first back you’ll just need to buy the:

• Grape juice refills
• Fining agents
• Yeast
• Flavoring agents
• Stabilizers

Though this is a lot you’ll save the money on the equipment cost that’s built into the wine making kits by just buying the refill products from then on out.

How They Work

The basics of using a wine making kit are basically the same as those at a large scale winery just on a much smaller scale. Depending on the type of wine you’re making some of the specific nuances are going to change.

The first step is to get the juice extracted from the whole grapes either by crushing or pressing them. When you’re making the homemade wine you can use a juice concentrate if you’d prefer instead. After pressing or crushing you’ll put it into the tank or bucket provided in your kit and will allow it to ferment.

After the designated timeframe, usually around 10 days, you’ll remove the remains of the crushed grapes from the liquid and transfer the liquid to a clean fermentation container.

Once the bubbling of the fermenting wine has stopped you’ll have your basic and raw wine that you’ll test for the alcohol and the undigested sugar contents with the hydrometer. After this the aging process can begin.

It’s important to note that these are just some of the basic generalities as each wine type and each wine kit will be a little different in process, ingredients, etc… Be sure to follow the specific instructions that come with the kit you purchase.