The Wine Making Process Simplified
There’s no doubt that the wine making process can be a bit complex. There are all kinds of decisions to make regarding varietals, yeast strain, and additives. However, the actual process of how wine is made can be understood in relatively simple terms. It’s important that you have a working knowledge of this process because everything we as winemakers do is to facilitate this process. We can build on this basic understanding over time, diving into more and more details along the way. The Simplified Wine Making Process After a lot...
read moreWhat Are Tannins?
Tannins are an astringent compound found in plants that are responsible for the gritty texture in red wines. They have no flavor or aroma but can be experienced as dryness. The word tannin stems from the use of this compound to “tan” leather. Which is why your tongue feels a little like leather when drinking a high tannin wine without food. Wikipedia defines tannins as “an astringent, bitter plant polyphenolic compound that binds to and precipitates proteins and various other organic compounds including amino acids and...
read moreAwesome Reusable Wine Labels
While it is great fun to have your very own wine label on the bottles you made it can also be a hassle when you go to reuse the bottle. Most wine labels leave a sticky mess behind that require chemicals to remove. There is one company, however, that makes a reusable wine label that leaves no mess behind and has quite a few other neat features. I found these not too long ago and wanted to check them out. I wrote to the company to see if they had any over-run labels from other orders that they could send me to review with you. They agreed and...
read moreHow to Use Bentonite to Clarify Wine
Bentonite is a common additive used to clarify and fine wines. It’s great for removing protein haze and can be used to remove off aromas. But what is it? How does it work? Let’s find out. What is Bentonite? Bentonite is an impure clay formed by the weathering of volcanic ash. It is an absorbent material that is able to bond with the floating particles that cause cloudiness in wine. The main types used to fine wine are sodium and calcium bentonite. While each will contain small amounts of other minerals they are described by the...
read moreHow to Back Sweeten Wine
Back sweetening is the process used to turn a completely dry wine into either an off dry or sweet wine. This is just one of many ways in which you can produce a sweet wine. The most common ways of back sweetening are by adding sugar or unfermented grape juice to a finished wine. By finished I mean fermented and stabilized. Back Sweetening with Sugar Often amateur winemakers will add sugar to a fully fermented dry wine to create a sweet wine. While this does work there are issues with the flavors of the wine and sugar. Because the sugar was...
read moreThe Great Riesling Yeast Experiment Part III
The Great Riesling Yeast Experiment has drawn to a close. The two different Rieslings produced during the experiment have now been finished, blended, and bottled. If you missed the first two parts here is Part I and Part II. Otherwise here’s a brief summary of the experiment. Starting with a single six gallon World Vineyard Riesling Kit from Winexpert I split it into two three gallon batches. Each batch was then fermented with a different strain of yeast. The purpose of the experiment was two fold: 1. determine if different yeast...
read moreHow to Degas Wine
Degassing your wine is a key step in the final stages of the wine making process. Simply put it’s the process of removing suspended carbon dioxide left over from fermentation. Before we talk about how to degas your wine let’s take a minute to talk about why it’s so important to get it done right. Why Degassing is Important It doesn’t seem like it should make a big difference, but leaving carbon dioxide in your wine can have three negative effects on your wine. 1. It leaves what should be a still wine carbonated. While...
read moreUsing Potassium Sorbate When Making Wine
Potassium sorbate (or k-sorbate) is a common additive used in wine kits. It’s usually added in the form of a power after fermentation has completed. But what does it do? What precautions should winemakers be taking when using it? What does Potassium Sorbate do? Simply put potassium sorbate is used to prevent spoilage by yeasts and molds in a finished wine. It does this by rendering these micro-organisms unable to reproduce. It is added to wines that have completed fermentation to prevent spoilage but also to prevent further fermentation...
read moreGlass Carboys vs Oak Barrels
The two most traditional vessels to age wine in at the amateur level is in either glass carboys or small oak barrels. Which is better? You’ll have to be the judge. Glass Carboys Glass carboys have been used as far back as the early 1800′s (per some historians), mainly to hold strong chemicals such as acids. Eventually these vessels were used in water coolers and by amateur wine makers. Their use in wine making stemmed from the need to have a small and affordable container to ferment and age wine in. Plastic carboys did not come...
read moreA Free and Simple Wine Making Log
The best way to learn from past successes and failures is by taking detailed notes in a wine making log. Previously I shared how to create a log using a notebook here. Over time I found that I wanted a more structured document to keep track of all the important measurements. To that end I created a free wine making log that fits on a single sheet of paper that I’d like to share with you. The Free Wine Making Log This has been tailored for kit wine making but can also be used when making wine with frozen must or fresh grapes. If...
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Matt Williams is an aspiring winemaker. He created Winemaker's Academy to help people such as yourself not only learn to make wine but make the best possible wine. Read more about Matt.Free Email Updates
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