Homemade Grape Wine

Dear Kraus,

I have a batch of peach wine and a batch of pear wine in 5 gallon glass jugs ready to bottle.  Both need to be sweetened at bottling time to bring out more of the fruit flavor.  Please explain to this rookie exactly how you sweeten the wine as you bottle it.  Do you add the sugar/water solutions to each bottle or do you add to the 5 gallon glass jugs, stir, and then bottle??  Same question on how to add the chemicals to prevent re-fermentation and oxidation.  And, is plain sugar OK...

Hello Kraus:

Last fall I acquired some good wine grapes.. red and white not enough of either for 5 gals.. thought I could make a blush, so I added them together.. it turned a reddish color but cloudy. So I added your Speedy Bentonite three weeks later i have clear whiskey color,  what happened?

Thanks Art
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Hello Art,

It sounds like your homemade wine has oxidized from excessive air exposure. Just like when an apple starts to turn brown after being bitten into, a wine can turn brown when it is...

Hello Kraus,

I have been making wine from top end ($200+) wine kits and really getting into it.

I was wondering if I should continue with wine kits or jump into creating wine from fresh grapes. I guess my questions is: What will produce a better red wine, a high end wine kit or quality fresh grapes?

Best Regards,
Dominick S.
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Hello Dominick,

This is really a great question, and one that I'm sure is on the minds of many individuals who use these homemade wine kits, so I'll cut right to the...

Hi,

I have started with 32 lbs. of concord grapes, sorted and crushed.  The recipe (doubled) on page 19 of your book named "Winemaker's Recipe Handbook", recipe #54, the Concord "Fresh -Dessert" one does not call for any water, where the other Concord choices of wine recipes do call for water. 

As I have never made wine before that did not call for some water, what can I expect this wine to be like, dryish, or not, I am at a loss as to what to expect. Should I add some water?

Thanks
Kelly
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Quick question,

If you have frozen fruit (like I do) for months do you need to use Sodium Metabisulfite when you start the wine brewing process or does the freezing kill all the bad stuff.

Thanks,
Steven
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Hello Steven,

Unfortunately, freezing does not destroy mold, bacteria or other "bad stuff". It simply puts its growth into suspension, or hibernation if you like. Freezing will damage some of the cells with freezer-burn, but not nearly enough to save your fruit from needing a sulfite...

Hello E.C. Kraus,

I recently purchased your County Fair concord juice. I am planning to use 4 cans to make 5 gallons. I noticed the can shows 5 tsps of acid blend for 4 cans, but your wine recipe page online shows to use 1 tbsp [3 tsps] with 40# of fresh concord grapes and none in 80# version of the recipe.
 
Why is there a difference? I don’t want the wine to have a “bite” it can have with too much acid.  What do you suggest?

Thanks Kelly
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Dear Kelly,
 
I can certainly understand your...

Hi EC,

How long can finished wine be stored in gallon glass jugs?

Gabe
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Dear Gabe,

There is nothing unique to homemade grape wine that makes it spoil any faster or keep any better than commercially made wines. As long as the homemade grape wine is treated properly, it will keep just as long and as good as wines stored in glass jugs that you purchase at the store.

What does treated properly actually mean?

1. It means your wine must be dosed with sulfites, and 
2. Your glass jugs must be...

Hello Kraus,

I made 5 gallons of grape juice by using a steam juicer. In this process the stems were still attached to the grapes. Do I need to do anything special from the normal wine making process? I was told the stems contain pectin and may require additives.

Thank you,
Henry
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Hello Henry,
 
I believe what your friend was referring to is the tannin that is in the stems of the grapes. Tannin is also found in the seeds and skins.

Some tannin in wine is a good thing. It helps the wine...

Hi,

When is the best time to filter a wine? I have a wine that is about 4 months old and I'am wondering if it is to early to filter it.
 
Don
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Hello Don,

When first learning how to make your own wine it is important that you don't become too impatient, however since the wine has been bulk aging for 4 months, I would say you've been patient enough. It would be fine to filter your wine at this time.

One of the more common wine making tips I share with beginning winemakers is:

"Only filter...

Hello,

I'm curious as to when the threat of wine turning to vinegar is over, if ever, and what causes it. Is there an in depth explanation anywhere I can get the science of this?

Thanks Jane

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Dear Jane,

Acetic acid is what makes vinegar taste like vinegar. If you had acetic acid in a jar and poured some of it into a fruit drink, it would immediately start to take on the characteristics of vinegar.

Acetic acid is made by a bacteria known as acetobacter. This bacteria is everywhere: in the...

Almost everyone understands that wines need to age, but very few people realize just how important aging actually is to a wine. Aging is a process that is most often either underestimated or completely ignored by the home winemaker.

In reality, I would venture to say that aging a wine is just as important as the quality of the grapes used to produce the wine. If you're missing either one, the wine will suffer noticeably.

Within the first 30 days of aging most people experience enough improvement...