Winemaking - Where To Find Instructions For Beginners

[manticle]

I know there are a few on this forum who dabble in winemaking as well. It's something I'm interested in having a crack at at some point in the near-ish future.

I'll mainly be looking at red grape based wine and am likely to want to work without sulphites as I find they don't agree with me. Basically at the moment though, I'm just wanting to read about the basic processes and see how similar and how different they are to grain based beer brewing. I've started reading an old book someone gave me (progressive winemaking by someone or other) but I'm not sure how much misinformation it may contain.

Any tips for a potential noob?

Thanks.

 

[Steve]

I know there are a few on this forum who dabble in winemaking as well. It's something I'm interested in having a crack at at some point in the near-ish future.

I'll mainly be looking at red grape based wine and am likely to want to work without sulphites as I find they don't agree with me. Basically at the moment though, I'm just wanting to read about the basic processes and see how similar and how different they are to grain based beer brewing. I've started reading an old book someone gave me (progressive winemaking by someone or other) but I'm not sure how much misinformation it may contain.

Any tips for a potential noob?

Thanks.

Maybe google wine making for dummies? Sorry thats the only advice I have but they have everything else in that series. Me and my father in law tried it a few years ago with grapes from a vine he had growing. We had kilos of grapes so we squashed them, got all the juice out and poured it into a new plastic rubbish bin. Put in the yeast. For weeks we used to just get our glasses and dunk them into the bin for a sample or 10. It wasnt too bad to be honest but then it turned sour. It was fun though.
Cheers
Steve

 

[manticle]

I did find Jack Keller's online reference here which looks a bit similar to how to brew.

http://winemaking.jackkeller.net/index.asp

Mainly just interested in what experienced winemakers recommend though as it's easy to find a reference for anything but not so easy to evaluate how good it is when you're new.

By the way Steve - I realise the above could be misinterpreted to mean I'm not interested in your above input which is incorrect. I'm interested in anyone's input that aims to be helpful. I guess what i mean is that I have no trouble finding references - i just don't know how they are perceived. As with brewing, there's likely to be a shit ton of misinformation available.

 

[Frank]

Try and find the book Wine from 100 Vines. Should be in your local library, it is an Australian book. I flipped through it a few years ago but can't remember the content that well. It is distributed along with all the other industry books on Viticulture and Winemaking, so I think it has a bit of credibility.

 

[hughyg]

Try Making Good Wine: A Manual Of Winemaking Practices for Australia and NZ by Rankine. It's got a lot of good info. Some of the basic science as well so it will tell you why you will need to add sulfite and acid adjust

 

[brewingdave]

I have found this site to be good for winemaking info http://www.vawa.net/winemaking-articles.html

The home winemaker's manual by Lum Eisenman is also a good reference (the link at the site above doesn't seem to work any more so I've attached it)

View attachment home_winemakers_manual.pdf

 

[manticle]

Try Making Good Wine: A Manual Of Winemaking Practices for Australia and NZ by Rankine. It's got a lot of good info. Some of the basic science as well so it will tell you why you will need to add sulfite and acid adjust

I understand why sulfites are used although I have tasted some lovely homemade wines mad entirely from grapes (no extra yeast, sulphites, acids, water, tannins etc). My limited reading suggests there are sulphites naturally occurring within the grape - I guess it's just a bit of a punt as natural fermentation for ciders might be and the wine may be less conducive to being aged.

Thanks all for the responses so far. I'll keep reading and when I eventually get around to doing it will report my results..

 

[hughyg]

I understand why sulfites are used although I have tasted some lovely homemade wines mad entirely from grapes (no extra yeast, sulphites, acids, water, tannins etc). My limited reading suggests there are sulphites naturally occurring within the grape - I guess it's just a bit of a punt as natural fermentation for ciders might be and the wine may be less conducive to being aged.

Thanks all for the responses so far. I'll keep reading and when I eventually get around to doing it will report my results..

Yeast produce a small amount of SO2 however no where near enough to bind up the acetaldehyde which is a major byproduct of the fermentation of wine. And unlike beer wine is not boiled so think of all the nasty bacteria leaving on the grapes just itching to get to the grape juice
I just had a look at the above link by the naked brewer. Looks pretty good. I wouldnt bother with the rankine book. just have a flick through it

 

[ausdb]

Winepress Forums the guys here are as serious about wine as we are about beer.

 

[jonocarroll]

Try Making Good Wine: A Manual Of Winemaking Practices for Australia and NZ by Rankine.

This is the wine equivalent to 'How To Brew' as far as a lot of amateur winemakers I know are concerned.

 

[fraser_john]

And unlike beer wine is not boiled so think of all the nasty bacteria leaving on the grapes just itching to get to the grape juice

Typically the high acid content of grape juice, then eventually the high acid/high alcohol environment of wine prevent any of these from taking any form of foothold in the wine.

The amateur winemaker probably poses more of a threat to the result than the bugs such as via the spoiling of the wine via oxygen contact, mis-dosing sulphites etc.

 

[manticle]

Typically the high acid content of grape juice, then eventually the high acid/high alcohol environment of wine prevent any of these from taking any form of foothold in the wine.

The amateur winemaker probably poses more of a threat to the result than the bugs such as via the spoiling of the wine via oxygen contact, mis-dosing sulphites etc.

That's the stuff I want to know more about.

Cheers.

 

[fraser_john]

That's the stuff I want to know more about.

Cheers.

I bought Home Winemaking Step By Step, I would not recommend buying it, it was a good read, but not the sort of reference I would have preferred to have. I am lucky to have a winemaker live near me and he helped me no end to make my first decent wine from my grapes, even though I had a terrible season and the vines/berries suffered badly from black spot.

I am hoping to have him around for the upcoming vintage as my vines are very healthy this year, thanks to another winemakers pruning advice and a better understanding of viticulture practices.

 

[hughyg]

Typically the high acid content of grape juice, then eventually the high acid/high alcohol environment of wine prevent any of these from taking any form of foothold in the wine.

The amateur winemaker probably poses more of a threat to the result than the bugs such as via the spoiling of the wine via oxygen contact, mis-dosing sulphites etc.

Yes true. But I have seen many a bretty wine at 15+ alc and even more volatile oxidized wines which would have been prevented from a good so2 regime. I guess you have probably noticed I like so2 in wines. To me it's as important as cleaning your fermentor!

 

[maxvonrooster]

manticle
I use a big wooden barrel i crush the grapes and place this and the skins in the barrel give it 6 or 8 weeks and you have wine
the skins protect the grapes from oxygen and i dont add yeast just let the natural yeasts on the skin do its job
muscat wine 10% yum
its a shame you are not in newcastle i could show you my set up
greg

 

[manticle]

manticle
I use a big wooden barrel i crush the grapes and place this and the skins in the barrel give it 6 or 8 weeks and you have wine
the skins protect the grapes from oxygen and i dont add yeast just let the natural yeasts on the skin do its job
muscat wine 10% yum
its a shame you are not in newcastle i could show you my set up
greg

Sounds great. If I'm ever up that way I'll give you a shout.

Pics would be great too - the idea of the grape being the perfect complete ingredient for winemaking interests me very much.

 

[manticle]

To be honest, I'll probably be following advice from professionals before stuffing around too much with all natural wines. It's just that I have tasted some, know it's possible and am interested in it.

My main aim at the moment though is to work out as much as I can about processes first. Experiementation is good when you actually know stuff (which I don't) and I don't expect my first attempt to be a cracker.

 

[maxvonrooster]

i will post some pics when i can borrow a camera

 

[maxvonrooster]

Hey Manticle
I pinched the wifes digital camera here is a pick of my wine making set up
in the ist pick the top of barrel is sealed up this is were i pore in the grapes and juice and when full seal top

 

[maxvonrooster]

plus this
this pic is the first pick wrong way around