Just Starting Out.

[9CourseWineMusician]

Friends,

I am sorry for the new thread, however I feel this would be the easiest way for me to navigate your advice! (I'm actually new to FORUMS too!).

I suppose my first question, to the experts, would be - I am literally just starting with no knowledge or equipment of any kind.

Where do I start?

Thank you!

 

[Julie]

You need to get some equipment first. If you look under our vendor section you will see vendors who sell wine making equipment. After think about what type of wine you would like to make, white, red, blush, fruit and either dry or sweet.

 

[bkisel]

Welcome to the forum!

You started at the right place by coming here and asking your questions. I suggest you also go to You Tube and check out as many wine making videos as you reasonable can over the next week or two before buying your equipment. I would suggest you give strong consideration to starting with a kit wine. I believe there are places where you can get a package deal that includes all the hardware you need to get started along with a boxed kit wine.

Good luck!

 

[JohnT]

Welcome!

The best thing to do at this point is fire the question back to you...

What are you interested in making? Do you want to start making wine from "wine kits" or do you prefer to make wine from fresh fruit?

The answer to the above question will determine the equipment that you will need.

 

[cpfan]

First , Welcome to a Wonderful (and addictive) hobby.

Further to JohnT's point...what kind of wine do you want to make? Standard varietals like Merlot or Chardonnay? Fruit wines like apple or blackberry?

Roughly where in Virginia are you located? Somebody may be able to recommend a LHBS (Local Home Brew Store). Some folks learn better by hands on (or personal discussion), than from reading and viewing.

Steve

 

[9CourseWineMusician]

Steve,

I am in the Shenandoah Valley (so beautiful here!) and I will be looking to start out with grape wines, with what ever grapes I might be able to get my hands on. Not sure where to start with THAT either, lol!

However, thank you for your warm welcome! I look forward to working with you all!

 

[9CourseWineMusician]

JohnT,

It seems my first reply didn't make it to the thread. I mentioned I will be starting from scratch, and looking into making the simplest grape-based wine I can, simply to get the 'mechanics' and 'science' of it all. Assume I have NO background (and I also have NO plants), lol. So I am, literally, starting from Square 0ne (or zero - depending on your perspective).

Thank you!

 

[olusteebus]

A $70 kit including a primary ferment bucket, a 6 gallon carboy and essential tools will get you started. It does not include the ingredients for the wine.

I also suggest an inexpensive kit for your first wine. That is what I did and I learned the basics there.

I started out with a five gallon carboy which served me well and actually still does.The reason it was good for me is that When you get an inexpensive kit wine, many people make it 5 gallons instead of 6 to get more mouth feel and flavor.

I personally have 6 5 gallon carboys and no 6 gallon carboys. I have a few one gallon jugs and when I make 6 gallons, I split it up. That way I can top up the 5 gallon carboy with the wine I am making and top up the one gallon with a commercial wine.

Any how, That works for me. Support your local vendors as their prices generally are right in line with what you can get the same product shipped. Having said that, I mostly deal with some of the sponsoring vendors here because I live so far from a local vendor.

Also, I would not be afraid of the kits available on Amazon.

When looking at wine ingredient kits online, READ the reviews.

And you do live in a gorgeous area.

 

[sour_grapes]

I think I would start with kit wines, if I were you. This will cover a lot of the fermentation/aging steps that you will need to become familiar with (albeit with some important omissions).

From there, the next logical step would be to make wine from "pails" of grapes that someone else grew and crushed. These are readily available.

From there, the next logical step is to buy lugs of fresh grapes that someone else grew. Again, these are readily available, although I think you need to wait until the fall.

In the meantime, you could be developing your vineyard. It will take a few years to get decent fruit, I believe.

 

[9CourseWineMusician]

This is wonderful friends! Thank you for the advice, I believe I will try that then! I will browse the sponsors, but I will also look for wine kits near here (since I'm right in the heart of Wine Country - Virginia).

I will update with what I've found!

Thanks again!

 

[JohnT]

This is wonderful friends! Thank you for the advice, I believe I will try that then! I will browse the sponsors, but I will also look for wine kits near here (since I'm right in the heart of Wine Country - Virginia).

I will update with what I've found!

Thanks again!

If you do decide to make wine from whole, fresh grapes, could you let me know just how much you plan to make.

If you start small, then want to expand, you will find yourself having to first buy beginner equipment, then having to upgrade to something that can handle more volume.

 

[9CourseWineMusician]

JohnT

It pretty much is as you described it. I would like to start small, to GET to a point where I can either grow (or buy) WHOLE grapes in raw form and go from there. Not knowing what it takes, I really am relying on the wisdom of the community to help me achieve this. (For which I am grateful, of course!).

So for now, I am liking the 'beginner kit' idea to get my...'feet wet', no pun intended!

So yeah, that's where I am right now.

 

[Winenoob66]

Welcome to the forums, and to one of the most addicting hobbies ever created.

 

[9CourseWineMusician]

Mos Def my friend! I love it!

 

[JohnT]

OK,

Lets start out by assuming that you want to make about 100 liters of red wine from fresh grapes...

First you need to obtain the fruit. for 100 liters, you should need about 360 pounds of grapes. (100 liters is 12 cases of wine).

To start out with, you will need a crusher/destemmer. This device (around $500 to $600) will be the most expensive piece of equipment that you need to get. The good news here is that they last forever. I have been using mine since 1995 and it is still in great shape. The crusher/destemmer will first remove the grapes from the stems, then lightly "smoosh" them.

From the crusher/destemmer, the grapes go into a primary fermentation vat. This can be as simple as a couple of "brute" garbage cans which are thick, sturdy, and food safe. You can get them from any lowes or home depot.

After a week, it will be time to press your grapes. For this you will need a press. These can cost anywhere from $250 on up. The bigger the press, the more expensive it will be.

From the press, the wine needs to be placed into a secondary fermentation vessel. This can be either a carboy (glass 5 gallon jug), a demijohn (glass 54 liter jug), or a tank (from 100 liters on up). Like everything else, the bigger it is, the more expensive it is. For 100 liters, I would suggest 2 54-liter demijohns. This should run you about $60 or $70. to seal the demijohns, you will need stoppers and fermentation traps. You will also need 2 or 4 single gallon jugs to hold any "over-run" that does not fit into your demijohns.


As far as ingredients (other than grapes) you will need..

10 packets of yeast. I am a big fan of Lalvin RC-212
1 lb of yeast neutriant
1 lb bag of K-Meta powder.
1 lb bag of tartaric acid (to be added if your acid is too low).

You will also need (most of the following is under $10...

Acid test kit (to measure the acid in your wine)
hydrometer (to measure the sugar in the wine)
syphon hose / racking cane
oak cubes (optional)
corks and a corker
bottles
bottle filler


The above should cover it. It is kind of "bare bones", but I think that I have listed the essentials.

 

[olusteebus]

100 Liters!! I didn't see he wanted to make that much wine. That would be a daunting task for a beginner wouldn't it. 130 bottles or so. That would surely not be "starting small"!

 

[Medic8106]

Welcome. I am a beginner myself and have learned so much from reading these forums. I just started this year and my first batch was a chocolate/strawberry from frozen fruit. I have made sunflower and various "juice" based wines (Welches, etc). I think the frozen concentrates and juice wines are a good place to start, at least it has been for me. I get a decent understanding of wine making at a relatively low cost and hopefully they will taste good in the end! I started making many 1 gallon batches... A learning experience and if I have to pour it out, no big loss. A good resource I was directed to when beginning was Jack Kellers website on wine making. You will find beginner to expert advise there with many, many recipes.

http://winemaking.jackkeller.net/

Good Luck!

 

[jamesngalveston]

julie gives you good advice...make sure you have all the things needed before you start....

also, for a first batch, i would use a frozen concentrate are make a batch of dragon blood...that will get you familiar with everything....and there both quite easy. are get a juice kit

 

[JohnT]

100 Liters!! I didn't see he wanted to make that much wine. That would be a daunting task for a beginner wouldn't it. 130 bottles or so. That would surely not be "starting small"!

I just use 100 liters as a benchmark (comes to only 25 gallons, or 5 carboys). This is just about the amount that I did my first year and I have started many beginners at that volume.

I always hate the "cost of upscale". I feel that it is always best to purchase equipment once. If he gets a crusher/destemmer and a press, then why make so little? It is almost just as easy to make 25 gallons as it is to make 5 gallons (it is just a matter of getting more grapes).

 

[JohnT]

julie gives you good advice...make sure you have all the things needed before you start....

also, for a first batch, i would use a frozen concentrate are make a batch of dragon blood...that will get you familiar with everything....and there both quite easy. are get a juice kit

I would add that making a batch of Dragon's Blood is a very inexpensive way to learn how to ferment something. I would also add that you should not expect the end product to resemble a dry "Big Red". If a dry "Big Red" is what you are trying to learn how to make, then Dragon's Blood is not for you.

James - please take the above the right way. There is not anything wrong with dragon's blood (provided that is what you want).