Everyone who becomes a home winemaker has their own reasons for deciding to home brew their own wine. There is so much available information about wine making on the Internet, it’s enough to make your head spin. To eliminate your need to hunt for some basic “must know” information all over, we’re providing you with what we think are 9 most important aspects you need to know about home wine making so you don’t miss something important in the beginning.
1. Invest in Wine Making Kits
When you first see the price of wine making kits, the price may scare you. However, when you take the time to take a look at all the things you get with the kit you will see that almost all of the wine making supplies are reusable, so you will continue to use them when you brew future batches of wine. This, in turn, saves money over time. Plus, purchasing kits assures beginning wine makers that they have all the supplies they need for the process.
2. Making Your Own Wine Isn’t More Expensive
If you drink wine regularly, the cost of wine kits will save you money as you brew more and more batches.
3. Making Wine With Fresh Fruit Isn’t More Difficult
When making wine from fresh fruit understand the need for extra equipment such as the catch stand, crusher, destemmer and fruit press. If you don’t have a lot of room, this isn’t a good option for you.
4. Wine Concentrates Offer a Much Larger Grape Selection
Because of the huge selection, and because wine concentrates are made with grapes that are picked at the peak of their freshness, they consistently produce excellent tasting wines. If you try to buy grapes or use your own, the quality of the grapes may not be as good.
5. First Time Home Wine Makers Are Better Off Using Wine Concentrates
Wine concentrates offer reliability. Concentrates come in the exact amount needed to make a batch of wine. Consistency is important, and it will minimize discouragement and frustrations.
6. Only Use Mature Ripe Fruit When Making Fruit Wines
Unripe green fruit has too much acid and very little sugar, neither of which are qualities that will produce the best tasting fruit wines.
7. You Can Make Wine From Dried Berries or Rose Hips
Only purchase dried berries or rose hips from places that sell wine making supplies as opposed to grocery stores or other locations. These dried flowers and berries are cultivated specifically for wine making. Buying berries from these sellers assures you that you get the right amount for specific amounts of wine.
8. Adding Oak Chips to Your Fermenter Will Give Wine the Flavor of an Oak Barrel
Oak barrels aren’t practical for home winemakers because of the cost, and because of sanitation issues. When you add oak chips to your fermenter, you are adding oak chips that are made from the same wood that is used to make wine barrels.
9. Homemade Wine Lasts Just as Long as Store Bought Wine
Red wines get their deep color from the skins, so the longer you leave those skins on, the deeper the color will be. Acid or tannin in the wine also helps retard spoilage and prevent oxidation. The flip side of this is that high amounts of acid or tannin change the taste of the wine – though not for the better. Allowing wine to age creates a deeper and more flavorful wine.
If you are a wine lover the process of making your own wine can be a very rewarding one. You can also get customized labels to give your wine a more professional look. Regardless of whether you’re a wine connoisseur or someone who is new to the world of wine, by making your own wine, you will develop a far greater appreciation for the wine making process, and the taste of great wines.
