Smart Dog WineryTM
a smart dog can sniff out a good wine
Start in the middle - Starting with kits
Or the advantages of starting with kits.
Reading about wine making can make it can seem a daunting
task to start with several hundred pounds of grapes and hope to turn
it into a good wine. And
it is, but you can make a very good, even award winning wine by
starting part way through the process.
This is where wine concentrate kits come in.
Both skip the crushing/destemming and pressing
stage (frozen must still requires pressing).
The concentrate kits generally advertise that you can have a
drinkable wine in four (4) weeks (actually generally takes a while
longer, but will get to that in a bit).
Making a good wine at home is not difficult,
but it does take time.
Rushing through steps can turn a potentially good wine into
something that is totally undrinkable.
Starting with a kit can teach you a lot of the basics.
What comes in a typical kit?
The wine kit will included most of the
following the following:
·
Grape concentrate/juice
·
If it is a red wine, it may contain a
packet of dried grape skins
·
Yeast
·
A packet of Bentonite (type of clay)
- helps yeast activity and removes proteins.
·
May contain oak granulars,
elderberries, elderflowers, essence bottle, reserve bag
·
A packet of Potassium Metabisulphite
- used to prevent oxidation & improve shelf life.
·
A packet of Potassium Sorbate - used
as an anti-microbial agent to prevent re-fermentation.
·
A packet of Fining Agent - removes
proteins, which results in a clear stable wine
When you first open a kit look for the specific
instruction leaflet for that kit.
Read it and make sure you got all of the components for that
kit. For some wine
styles, you may be supplied multiple packages of the same ingredient
(e.g. yeast, bentonite, oak, fining agent).
For your first wines make sure you follow the instructions
and use all the ingredients in the steps outlined.
Later you can start changing things (on subsequent kits).
The equipment I listed in Getting Started (I)
are generally required, but the following are needed as a minimum.
·
Primary Fermentor - A food grade
plastic container calibrated to 23L. (6 US Gal.).
·
Secondary Fermentor - A glass or
plastic carboy to hold 23L. (6 US gal.) and will fit a fermentation
lock.
·
Fermentation Lock & Bung - Fits into
the carboy, and is half-filled with water or sterilizing solution.
Allows CO2 to escape and prevents oxygen and spoilage organisms from
entering the wine.
·
Siphon Hose & Rod - Approximately 6ft
long flexible, food grade tubing with a rigid plastic siphon rod.
·
Hydrometer - Used to check Specific
Gravity of your wine at different stages of the fermentation
process.
·
Wine Bottles - 30 x 750ml and corks
F our days over four weeks and about 12 hours to your
first wine.
The following is a general overview of a
typical kit process. I
strongly suggest you keep good notes and perhaps pictures as you go
along so that you either repeat it or change it as you desire,
DAY ONE - WEEK ONE – about Four hours
1.
Clean and sanitize the primary
fermenter, lid, wine thief, hydrometer and stirring spoon. Rinse
well with warm water four times. Place primary fermenter on a table
or counter.
2.
Pour four litres of warm water into
the primary fermenter. Add contents of Bentonite packet and stir
well for two minutes. NOTE: There may be some undissolved Bentonite
after stirring for two minutes. This is normal.
3.
Holding the bag of grape concentrate
upright by the neck, carefully remove the cap. NOTE: The snap cap on
the bag is easily removed with a standard bottle opener.
4.
Empty the bag of grape concentrate
into the primary fermenter. NOTE: The natural sugars in the
concentrate may crystallize and become solid. This is normal. The
crystals will dissolve when mixed with water and stirred.
5.
Fill empty bag with warm water and
pour into the primary fermenter.
6.
Add cool water to the primary
fermenter up to the 23 litre level.
7.
Stir thoroughly for two minutes with
the stirring spoon. This is important for proper fermentation.
8.
Measure the Specific Gravity using a
hydrometer and wine thief. The Specific Gravity should be 1.085 to
1.090 or higher. If the Specific Gravity reading is lower stir
liquid again for two minutes. Record the date and Specific Gravity.
9.
If oak is included in your kit, add
now. Stir well.
10.
Sprinkle contents of wine yeast pack
over the surface of the liquid.
11.
Cover the primary fermenter with a
loosely resting lid or a lid fitted with an air-lock (half-filled
with water) and stopper.
12.
Leave wine to ferment in a warm place
(approximately 20°-24º C or 68°-75º F) for seven days and until the
Specific Gravity is 1.010 or below.
DAY SEVEN - WEEK TWO – about two hours
1.
Measure the Specific Gravity using a
hydrometer and wine thief. Record the date and Specific Gravity
where indicated above. The Specific Gravity should be 1.010 to .990.
If not, wait a day or two.
2.
Clean and sanitize syphon hose,
racking tube and carboy. Rinse well with warm water at least three
times.
3.
Syphon the wine from the primary
fermenter on a table or counter to the carboy on the floor, leaving
the sediment behind. This will leave a space in the carboy. Do not
top-up the carboy at this time. See tips for details on syphoning.
4.
Fit the fermentation lock
(half-filled with water) and stopper into the neck of the carboy.
Place the carboy on a table or counter. Leave for 11 days until all
fermentation is over and the Specific Gravity is .996 to .990.
DAY 18 - WEEK THREE – about two hours
1.
Measure the Specific Gravity using a
hydrometer and wine thief. Record the date and Specific Gravity
where indicated above. The Specific Gravity should be .996 to .990.
If not, wait one more week.
2.
Syphon the wine from the carboy on
the table/ counter to a clean carboy on the floor, being careful not
to disturb the sediment. If another carboy is not available, syphon
the wine into the primary fermenter. Clean the carboy and syphon the
wine back into the carboy.
3.
Sanitize the stirring spoon. Rinse
with warm water three times.
4.
Using a clean container, mix contents
of metabisulphite packet and sorbate packet in 125 ml of cool water.
Add mixture to the carboy of wine.
5.
Add contents of the Kieselsol packet
to the carboy of wine.
6.
Stir the wine vigorously for three
minutes with the handle of the stirring spoon. Stir hard enough to
create foaming on the surface. Repeat this step at least 6 times
over a 24 hour period. Attach the fermentation lock after each
stirring. It’s very important to carry out this step to de-gas the
wine. Otherwise, the wine may not clear well
7.
After all the stirrings have been
completed, add the contents of Chitosan packet. Stir gently for 30
seconds.
8.
Add clean room temperature water or a
similar finished wine into the neck of the carboy to within two
inches of the bottom of the fermentation lock.
9.
Place the carboy on a table or
counter to allow the sediment to settle and not be disturbed at the
next stage when syphoning. 9. Leave the wine to clear for 10 days.
DAY 28 - WEEK FOUR – about four hours
Bottling Wine is brilliantly clear. If not
clear, you can wait another week. You may wish to filter the wine
before bottling, but I have found that by letting it clear it self
by settling generally works.
1.
Sanitize the carboy or primary
fermenter, syphon hose, racking tube and bottle filler. Rinse well
with warm water three times.
2.
Syphon the wine from the carboy on
the table or counter into another carboy. If another carboy is not
available, syphon the wine into the primary fermenter. Be very
careful not to disturb the sediment on the bottom of the carboy.
It’s helpful to secure the racking tube at the neck of the carboy
with a clamp or clothes pin. If desired, wine may be filtered before
bottling.
3.
At this point, you can sweeten the
wine to your taste. Make a prepared sugar syrup by boiling one half
cup of water and one cup of white granulated table sugar. Cool the
syrup, then gently stir small amounts of the sugar syrup into the
wine until the desired sweetness level is reached.
4.
Sanitize wine bottles, rinse well
with warm water three times.
5.
Place the carboy/primary fermenter of
wine on the table or counter.
6.
Syphon the wine into bottles on the
floor, leaving about 2.5 cm (1 inch) space once corks are inserted.
7.
Insert dry corks using a corker.
8.
Apply wine bottle labels and shrink
wraps.
9.
Keep bottles upright for seven days,
then lay bottles on their sides in a cool area (13º to 18º C, 55º to
64º F) for aging. Avoid extended aging of wine if stored above this
range.
10.
Although palatable immediately, for
optimal taste, age the wine for at least a few weeks before
consuming.
While your wine is now ready for drinking,
allowing it to rest in bottle for at least another four to six weeks
is a good idea.
WINEMAKING TIPS
As a winemaker, there are important factors to
keep in mind when making quality wine:
1.
CLEAN & STERILIZE ALL EQUIPMENT AND
BOTTLES: Clean stained or dirty equipment using Stericlean and rinse
thoroughly prior to sterilizing. Failure to properly sterilize all
equipment and bottles may result in an unsuccessful wine. To
sterilize equipment dissolve 50g of metabisulphite in 4L (1 US gal.)
of water (retain for future use). Be certain to rinse all traces of
sterilant from your equipment and bottles before proceeding. Corks
may be sterilized by soaking 5-10 minutes in sterilizing solution.
2.
Use a good quality drinking water to
make your wine, including tap water, spring or filtered water. Avoid
heavily chlorinated water or softened water.
3.
Use a hydrometer to accurately gauge
the progress of fermentation.
4.
When racking, try not to splash the
wine to minimize the incorporation of oxygen into your wine. Care
must be taken not to mix the sediment with the clear wine at the
bottling stage. Should this inadvertently occur it will be necessary
to let the sediment re-settle for a few days before proceeding.
Using a rigid plastic racking tube and clamp in conjunction with the
siphon hose is very helpful.
5.
Fill wine bottles so there is 2.5 cm
or 1 inch of air space between the wine and the cork. Avoid excess
air space in the bottle as this will lead to spoilage and oxidation
in the bottled wine.
6.
After corking the bottles, keep
bottles upright for seven days to allow corks to properly seal
against the bottle neck. After seven days, bottles should be stored
on their sides to keep corks moist.
7.
The ideal temperature for storing
your finished wine, is 13º to 18º C (55º to 64º F). If you don’t
have a cool place to store your bottled wine, avoid aging it for a
long time.
Or my excursion into winemaking
