E.C. Kraus Home Wine and Beer Making Supplies

I am a diabetic, but my doctor has suggested 2 glasses of wine a night. Can I substitute artificial sweeteners to bring up the "sweetness level" of my wines after the fermentation has stopped? Will it affect the aging after bottling?Name: FrankState: TX Hello Frank, There is nothing that suggest that artificial sweeteners affect the aging process, or aging-chemistry, of a wine. So from this...

There are many pieces of homemade wine equipment than can be described in just one post.  It’s important to understand each piece of homemade wine equipment, how it functions, and whether or not a particular piece of equipment is needed in your own home winemaking practice.  Today’s post features three more important pieces of equipment: the Three Spout Bottle Filler, the Wine Thief, and the Brew...

Hello Ed, I've been making homemade wine for over 20 years. Good friend of mine got me started and he introduced me to E. C. Kraus. I purchased a starter kit from you guys in 1992. Best move that I ever made. That brings me to my story. I make cranberry wine every year and it usually comes out great. Last years batch went cloudy on me. The taste is great, it's just cloudy (what's left of it). I'm...

Home winemaking, while it can be hard work at times, is a delightful hobby that for some can turn into something more serious such as a second career.  For most, however, winemaking provides a lot of pleasure and excitement in creating something that can be enjoyed by not only them but also by friends and family.  Before you get to that point, however, you need to start at the beginning and learn...

Sodium metabisulfite is a very important part of winemaking, and is used commonly in both commercial winemaking and home winemaking.  Basically, sodium metabisulfite wears many hats, making it an extremely versatile and thus valuable item in winemaking.  It acts as a sanitizer in both the wine and in the equipment used, as well as a protector against the damaging effects of too much oxygen. Very...

1. Are the mushroom caps easy to install, or do you need special equipment. Do they seal as well as regular corks, (over time). 2. Wine bottles that have a screw top, can you reuse them with a cork.Name: Tom H.State: Davison, Mi Hello Tom, The Mushroom corks are very easy to install. This is the biggest advantage to using them over traditional wine bottle corks. You do not need a wine bottle...

Home winemaking is an enjoyable hobby that can bring you great joy, but if you’re not prepared, it can be frustrating and near impossible.  It’s important to understand the first steps in winemaking; to get a solid grasp of the basics, as well as an understanding of why it is you are doing what you are doing at any step of the way. One of the first steps in winemaking that you should do is to get...

I am making a Cab Sauvignon from the California Connoisseur wine kit. I also plan on making a Merlot next and would like to blend some of the two wines before bottling. I would like to save half of the Cab in a 3 gal carboy and bottle the other half. However, at what step in the process is it best to store the bulk Cab while I am making the Merlot? After Stabilization and...

There are so many more pieces of homemade wine equipment than can be described in one post.  It’s important to understand each piece of homemade wine equipment, how it functions, and whether or not a particular piece of equipment is needed in your home winemaking practice.  Today, you’ll be introduced to three important pieces of equipment: the Copper Tun Heating Pad, the Transfer Pump, and the...

I think I'm obtaining an off-taste with my Muscadine wine because it needs additional degassing. I degas the wine once after the 7 day initial fermentation. Can I also degas again after 30 days and right before the first rack? I understand that the degassing technique may place unwanted oxygen into the wine.....what do you recommend? ThanksName: HermanatorState: Missouri Hello Hermanator, I would...

I made an apple cider and a apple/blueberry cider. Both are in the aging process  (4 months before bottling). I have the apple cider in a 5 gal. oak keg and the blueberry on in a 5 gal. carboy. When I want to bottle, should I be adding a sodium metabisulfite prior to bottling?Name: Mike in NYState: NY Hello Mike, If you are aging your wine in bulk, such as a carboy or oak wine barrel, we recommend...

I'm interested in the pectic enzyme part. Is this something I can add at the end of the fermentation to clarify the wine?Name: Paul DunnState: Idaho Hello Paul, Thanks for the great question. I'd like to share the answer with everyone. Hope you don't mind. What Is Pectic Enzyme? The first thing that needs to be understood is that pectic enzyme is not a fining agent. It does not clean...

When racking [siphoning wine] I'd like to add 1/4 teaspoon of sulfites. What is the best method to do this? Should I add and mix the sulfites in the carboy before transferring it to the empty one to protect it from the oxygen exposure, or put the sulfites in the empty carboy so the wine will mix with it when being received?Name: Roger C.State: Connecticut Roger, I don't know as it's too...

There are many more pieces of homemade wine equipment than can be described in one short post.  It is very important to understand the different types of homemade wine equipment, how they function, and whether or not a particular piece of winemaking equipment is needed in your home.  Therefore it’s important to introduce to you as many pieces of equipment as possible in as many posts as it takes!...

... I was looking for different ways to sweeten my wine and came across this [corn sugar] in your beer section of your catalog. That is some sweeten there beer with corn sugar instead of cane sugar. The article said it would give the beer a crisper taste. How do you think this would affect the wine? Thanks PatrickName: Patrick DavisState: GA Hello Patrick, It is true that most beermakers...

I have a question! After making a sugar-syrup, how much of it will do I use to raise 5 gallons of wine? I mean how much does the S.G. [Specific Gravity, hydrometer reading] go up say per cup added? Thanks for any help.Name: Thomas J RomanoState: New York (Long Island) Hello Thomas, It would depend on what the S.G. [Specific Gravity] was of the sugar syrup you made.  You can use a wine hydrometer...

So, your homemade wine is just about ready and you’re preparing to bottle!  All the hard work creating your masterpiece is nearly complete and transitions into a more passive process of waiting for the wine to be ready to be shared and enjoyed! You must be careful at this point to not get too lax about things, as the bottling process is just as important as every step up until now.  That being...

I started a fermentation with 10 lbs. of cleaned orange fruit, 6.5 lbs. of sugar, 3 gallons of water, yeast, pectic enzyme etc. I forgot to take the original specific gravity. If I remember correctly when I racked the first time my reading was 1.030. I just racked it a second time and am getting the reading of .990. Any way to accurately figure out the alcohol content or not? I'll know better next...

Whether you are just starting to get involved in home winemaking or you have been making wine at home for some time, it’s a good idea to have a good understanding of the different types of homemade wine equipment, how they function, and whether or not a particular piece of equipment is needed in your home. Of course, there are many more pieces of homemade wine equipment than can be described in...

I'm in the process of making my first batch of wine. I'm making apple wine. When I started, I took a hydrometer reading and it was in between 1.080-1.100. I let it ferment in the bucket for about a week and a half. When I racked it into the carboy I took another hydrometer reading and it was about the same.(this was on the 7th of January.) I just took another hydrometer reading today( Jan 21) and...