Its Wine o'clock!

[9CourseWineMusician]

Hello friends,

I am seeking fun and adventure in 'starting' to make wine here in the heart of the United States Wine industry - Virginia (where it all started!).

I have absolutely NO clue what I am doing, and have limited knowledge of wine and vocabulary only that I absolutely love and am passionate about it.

Please bear with me as I press on with this, and I mean absolutely no disrespect to anyone here - if I come across that way, I am truly sorry in advance, and I will avoid that at all costs.

I look forward to a grand a fun time together and will be more than happy to give credit where credit is due.

-Lets do this!
9CWM

 

[sour_grapes]

Welcome aboard, and good luck!

 

[Julie]

Hi,

Welcome to winemakingtalk.

 

[9CourseWineMusician]

Replies to Julia and Sour Grapes

Thank you so much! Its good to be here.

 

[bkisel]

Hi, Welcome again! [Saw your other post first and left a response to your question there.]

 

[JohnT]

As others have said, welcome aboard!

You will find that in belonging to this site, you will have a leg up on all other beginners. The advice and coaching by the folks here will prove to be invaluable to you as you progress in experience.

First question to you is this.. What are you planning to make? Are you going to start with kit wine or are you going to make wine from fresh grapes?

 

[9CourseWineMusician]

To JohnT

Thank you for the welcome, sir!

I will be starting from scratch with fresh grapes. As a matter of fact, I don't actually, have grapes right now (no plants, anyway). So to answer the other question: I am not terribly concerned with the TYPE of wine I'm making, yet, I am seeking an 'easy' introduction into the 'mechanics' of making wine.

So, John, if you would - possibly suggest a 'simple' start to get the ball rolling and the 'know-how' process begun, then once I am comfortable with that, I suppose we could look into the different varietals.

What suggestions have you, sir?

Thanks!

 

[vernsgal]

Hi and welcome to WMT.

 

[9CourseWineMusician]

Thank you Ms. Kim! Its great to be here among 'my people' :-D

 

[Boatboy24]

Welcome aboard. What part of VA are you in? I'm in Prince William County.

 

[9CourseWineMusician]

BoatBoy!

That is nice to hear! I am in Frederick County (on the OTHER side of the hill). My Uncle was a chief firefighter in PWC! Good stuff! Good to see you and thanks for the welcome!

 

[JohnT]

OK,

so, where to begin...

A lot of folks begin by making "kit wine". The equipment costs for kits is much less then if you plan to make from grapes, but the ingredients are much more expensive. Kits allow you to make small batches (6 gallons or so) rather than large ones. Kits, more or less, start you off with grape juice that you are to ferment into wine. Sounds simple, but there can be a lot to this. As far as results, kits have come a long way in the last 20 years or so and con produce some amazingly spectacular wines (did you hear that JOESWINE?)

What you do not learn from a kit is how to handle fresh grapes (which I feel is half the knowledge you will eventually require). If you feel that fresh grapes is the way you plan on going, then that is where I might suggest that you start.

For fresh grapes, you will need...

crusher/destemmer
press
Primary Fermentation tubs


The above is used to crush and press grapes into juice. From there, you will need the following (same for both kits and fresh grapes),

Secondary fermentation vessels (carboy, demijohn, or tank)
stoppers and fermentation traps.
hydrometer,
acid test kit,
yeast,
Yeast neutrient,
Pump or syphon hose
K-meta powder
tartaric acid powder

(based on the amount you plan to make, the amounts of the above will change)

 

[seth8530]

Welcome to the forum, you can learn everything here you could want to learn about wine making... well almost (;... Anyways, I would start out with a kit or perhaps try calling M&M grape to see if they have any frozen must or juice that fits your fancy... No better way to learn than to jump right on in eh?

 

[Boatboy24]

BoatBoy!

That is nice to hear! I am in Frederick County (on the OTHER side of the hill). My Uncle was a chief firefighter in PWC! Good stuff! Good to see you and thanks for the welcome!

I see now you're in Berryville. I have a sister in Waterford - not too far.

 

[9CourseWineMusician]

Ok JohnT (Maestro),

Lets eat this elephant one bite at a time (this is an amazingly helpful post by the way).

First: Based on what you've told me do you suppose I should start a small 5-6 gallon KIT batch first, or do you think I could just start with GRAPES (based on what I see in this post it seems I might be able to).

Second (if I start with grapes): Any suggestions for the first three pieces of equipment (as in where to get them, or perhaps household things I can use)?

Lets start THERE! :-D (This is FRICKIN' EXCITING!)

 

[9CourseWineMusician]

Boatboy!

Yeah, not far at all. :-D

 

[9CourseWineMusician]

Seth,

Heck yeah! No doubt about it! If seeing is believing then doing is learning! Can't wait!

Thanks for the warm welcome.

 

[seth8530]

Of course, I hope to hear from your future fermentations soon!

 

[Pumpkinman]

Welcome aboard!

 

[JohnT]

Ok JohnT (Maestro),

Lets eat this elephant one bite at a time (this is an amazingly helpful post by the way).

First: Based on what you've told me do you suppose I should start a small 5-6 gallon KIT batch first, or do you think I could just start with GRAPES (based on what I see in this post it seems I might be able to).

Second (if I start with grapes): Any suggestions for the first three pieces of equipment (as in where to get them, or perhaps household things I can use)?

Lets start THERE! :-D (This is FRICKIN' EXCITING!)

Checkout my post here..

I would suggest that, if fresh grapes is you ultimate goal, you should start with fresh grapes. Why wait, enjoy the full experience right away!

The post above gives a bare bones list of the types of things you would need for a 100 liter (12 case) batch.

http://www.winemakingtalk.com/forum/f5/just-starting-out-42559/index2.html#post475446


I find that you should research a local supply store in your area. The internet is always an option, but beware of the shipping charges.

As far a being excited..... GOOD! I have been doing this for 25 year and I am still always excited about it.