Home winemaking is an art that requires passion, knowledge, and equipment. as Homewinemaker Depot celebrates our 50th year in business, we hope to share how any at-home novice can perfect these skills too. Our guidance to help you get started with making wine at home is one that we have crafted through years of making wine, and we know it will help you come to share our love of winemaking!
Understanding Wine Wine, of course, begins with the grapes. When you are making your wine, everything will depend on what grapes you are using, how they have been grown, and their quality. It is always important to choose the highest quality grapes! We follow classic blends often, but once you become comfortable with the process of winemaking you will find that you can experiment with flavors that you enjoy. Our home winemaking guide provides detailed information to help you understand the processes. Equipment There are a lot of tools and products that you will need to begin your home winemaking journey. Finding the right equipment is an important step, and knowing what is essential will help you to get your process started as soon as possible. We offer a home winemaking starter kit to set you up with all of the basic equipment and chemicals. This kit is perfect for you to establish your foundations as a home winemaker! Crushing and Pressing When you picture crushing grapes for the winemaking process, you might imagine someone stomping in barrels full of grapes! Fortunately, the winemaking equipment that we use today has allowed for a much more streamlined process. Grapes can be destemmed as well, depending on whether you are making red or white wine. The act of crushing grapes needs to be done very precisely, allowing just the right amount of flavors and aromas to come through. Crushed grapes are called “must!” Fermentation The fermentation process is essential in turning your crushed grapes into alcohol. But there is much more than this occurring during the transformation process. Yeast is the key ingredient for fermentation. Though grapes have yeast naturally present in them, you will need to use cultured yeast to ensure that your homemade wine tastes just right. As the wine is heated during fermentation, the yeast converts the present sugars into alcohol! White wines and red wines will have different levels of sugar left in them, and this process can be adjusted to your taste preferences as you hone your wine-making skills. For the right winemaking supplies needed during this process, such as yeast and a glass jar, you can purchase our home winemaking starter kit! Clarifying and Stabling The traditional barrels that many associate with the winemaking process come from the clarifying and stabilizing step. When the wine is left in these tanks or barrels, ingredients that are no longer needed will settle. The wine then needs to be clarified, which removes particles that will cloud the wine. The wine is then stabilized to stop the fermentation process from continuing. Much like any step in the home winemaking process, clarification must be done with great care to protect the flavors. Aging & Bottling Aging allows for the wine to gain even more natural flavors than it would if bottled immediately. The material that wine is stored in while aging can even affect its taste! Chemical reactions occur among the ingredients of the wine, making for an even more refined, finished product. Some wine is made to be consumed right after it is finished being produced, but home winemaking allows you to decide what will best suit your taste preferences.
Since 1972, the Homewinemaker Depot has expanded into an industry-leading wine supply and equipment seller to large wineries and wine hobbyists alike. However, our goal has remained the same — to help home winemakers become worldly wine aficionados. If you are interested in starting your home winemaking journey, contact us today!