The history of wine production dates back to 6,500 years ago, where archeological evidence has been cited in various sites in Europe. Since the first days of wine production, wine has continued to play an integral role in the history of culture, civilization, cuisine, and agriculture. The United States alone has nearly 3,000 vineyards, clearly depicting the continual high demand for this product. As wine continues to be an integral aspect of culture, personal winemaking is also becoming a popular pastime and hobby. Wine making kits and supplies make creating personal wines a simple process and an enjoyable hobby that can be shared with friends and family. Wine making also presents a myriad of options that might not necessarily be available with store bought wines, and allows you to customize the drink to your liking. Creating homemade wines allows for adjustments in sweetness, heaviness, and alcohol content. Additionally, there are endless recipes and opportunities for new types of homemade wine, allowing for varying wine making experiences and flavors. To get started, make sure to check out our Adventures in Homebrewing recipe guide and Wine Making FAQ.
We decided to share with you the ten top facts about making wine at home that you may not have known.
1. One in every five bottles of wine are personally made at home with wine making equipment.
2. Homemade wine is approximately a third of the cost of store bought wine. Over time, a home wine making kit will pay for itself.
3. You can produce up to 30 bottles of homemade wine in as little as four weeks with the correct wine making supplies.
4. Wine making equipment does not require a large space, and can easily be used in smaller kitchens.
5. Wine making also is not time consuming. The entire process totals a mere 4-5 hours, spread over the period of one month.
6. Many wines are made from grapes, but wine making allows for the option to choose from various fruit types or juice concentrates to create new flavors.
7. You can easily grow your own grapes and fruit to further customize the overall wine making process.
8. Wine making additionally allows you to customize wine to your liking, and choose from a variety of preferences such as sweet vs. sour, light or heavy, and alcohol content.
9. Wine making kits are easy to acquire and Adventures in Homebrewing offers a variety of wine making supplies at varying price points to suit your wine making needs.
10. Each wine making kit comes with a how-to guide which guides you simply through the wine making process.
For more information on wine making and how to get started with the process, be sure to check out our informative resources and wine making guides on Homebrewing.org.
Tag Archives: wine making kits
4 Things You May Not Know About Making Your Own Wine and Beer
There are some things that are just easier to buy instead of making yourself. Just like mattresses – apparently, no one has ever tried to make a mattress on their own. And then there are some things that people buy instead of making because they don’t know how to do it or don’t know if it would be worth doing.
Beer and wine are things that can be made at home and it’s surprisingly simple. Here are some things you may not know about it.
1) It’s not as hard as you think
Making wine or beer is a science. Getting everything just right – removing grittiness, maintaining flavor and freshness, etc. – can be a complicated process. But that doesn’t mean it’s an especially difficult process.
Anyone with the proper home beer brewing or wine making equipment can make their own. Adventures in Homebrewing sells wine and beer making kits with complete instructions for the novice home brewer.
2) It’s legal
The thought of making your own beer or wine may conjure up images of backwoodsmen moonshiners hiding from the law; cranking out bottles of white lightning from stills secreted away in the hills. Or perhaps, the Baldwin sisters from TV’s The Waltons who made a very alcoholic and very illegal concoction that they called “the recipe.”
While it is illegal to make your own whiskey or moonshine, making your own wine or brewing your own beer is perfectly legal. There are however certain restrictions. Homemade beer and wine is for “personal” consumption so you can’t sell it. Also, you can only make a certain amount of it – 100 gallons a year per adult in a household.
3) It’s not as expensive as you think
When the CD player first came out, it was very expensive. Only the richest of kings of England could afford it. Okay, that’s an exaggeration, but you understand. It was expensive, but, with time, the technology became cheaper. This is true with wine and beer making supplies, too. While once costly, it is now relatively inexpensive.
Also, in the past, bulky and pricey fruit presses or crushers were needed to make wine. Now concentrates or juices can be used instead.
4) It can be just as good as or better than commercial wines and beers
The commercial beer and wine makers have a variety of tastes and products, but you’re still limited to that specific group of tastes and products. Making wine at home or homebrewing beer gives you more options. And since you’re making it yourself, you can customize it to fit your tastes exactly. You can’t do that with the commercial stuff.
The quality of what you make can be as good as anything found in the stores. Adventures in Homebrewing has sold quality winemaking and beer-making supplies since 1966 and has had customers returning for over 40 years.