Copyright 1999
Chapter 22
HINTS, KINKS AND GADGETS
Winemaking consists of many small operations, and some winemaking procedures are only done once each season. Consequently, several years of experience may be needed to develop basic winemaking skills. Novice home winemakers can get many useful ideas and gain experience by visiting experienced home winemakers or small commercial wineries. Much practical information can be learned simply by observing how specific winemaking operations are done, and "tricks of the trade" can be learned quickly.
A variety of information on methods, techniques and gadgets suitable for producing small quantities of wine is presented here.
GETTING READY
Some home winemakers are disappointed each crush season when they are unable to purchase wine grapes. These winemakers discover they have waited too long, and grapes are no longer available. Beginning winemakers often experience this problem, and they become frustrated. Other winemakers simply procrastinate, and they are never ready to make wine when the grapes become ripe. These winemakers suddenly "discover" that the grapes are ripe, and they scramble to get their winemaking equipment checked, cleaned and ready to process the grapes.
Buying Grapes
Vineyard managers like to sell their crops early in the year. Commercial wineries usually complete their arrangements for purchasing grapes by June or early July. Home winemakers should contact commercial growers as early as possible. To avoid disappointment, they should try to complete arrangements no later than the 4th of July.
Getting Equipment Ready
Most home winemakers should consider the first week in August as "get ready" time, and all of the winemaking equipment should be taken out of storage, checked, repaired and cleaned thoroughly. The equipment will then be ready to handle the crush expeditiously when the grapes are ripe. An inventory of winemaking supplies should be taken, and orders should be placed for needed materials. Yeast and sulfite should be replaced each year.
Wine Yield
Commercial wineries use automatic or semiautomatic horizontal presses, and a minimum amount of labor is required to produce dry pomace with these machines. Depending on the variety of grapes, horizontal presses produce 150 to 180 gallons of wine per ton of grapes. On the other hand, most home winemakers use small, vertical basket presses. These little presses can produce high quality juice. However, considerable work is required, and most home winemakers are not prepared to expend the labor needed to dry the pomace completely. Consequently, home winemakers often get 140 to 150 gallons of wine from a ton of grapes. A case of wine contains 2.4 gallons, so most home winemakers get from 58 to 62 cases of wine from a ton of fruit.
Grape Quantities Needed
Sometimes beginning winemakers have trouble estimating how many grapes are needed. The data shown in Table 14 provides a reasonable basis for making fruit estimates. Home winemakers often get about 150 gallons per ton for red wines. However, white grapes are more difficult to press than red pomace, and white grapes are particularly difficult to handle with a vertical basket press. Consequently, most home winemakers only get 120 to 130 gallons of white juice per ton of grapes. The values shown in the Table were calculated based on a yield of 150 gallons for red wine and 125 gallons for white juice. Experienced winemakers always produce extra wine for topping up storage containers.
| POUNDS OF GRAPES | GALLONS OF RED WINE | GALLONS OF WHITE WINE |
| 100 | 7 | 6 |
| 200 | 15 | 13 |
| 300 | 22 | 19 |
| 400 | 30 | 25 |
| 500 | 37 | 31 |
| 600 | 45 | 38 |
| 700 | 52 | 44 |
| 800 | 60 | 50 |
| 900 | 67 | 56 |
| 1000 | 75 | 63 |
| 2000 | 150 | 125 |
CONTAINERS
A variety of containers are needed for winemaking. Boxes or other shallow containers are used to transport grapes from the vineyard to the winemaking area. Open containers are used for mixing and for red fermentations. Closed containers are used for fermenting white juice and for storing and aging wine.
Stainless steel is the material of choice for wine storage containers because it is inert, cleans easy and lasts for many years. Unfortunately, small stainless steel tanks suitable for wine storage are very expensive, so containers made of glass, polyethylene and wood are often used. Surplus beer kegs are an exception, and many home winemakers use stainless steel beer kegs for wine storage.
Bulk Grape Containers
Standard 2-ton gondolas measure 96 inches long by 48 inches wide by 48 inches high. A 1-ton tank measures 48 x 48 x 48 inches. A fruit bin measuring about 48 inches by 48 inches by 22 inches will hold about 1000 pounds of grapes.
A 48-inch x 32-inch x 24-inch box will hold about 650 pounds of grapes, and standard 32-gallon plastic trash cans hold about 135 pounds. When lined with trash bags, plastic milk crates hold 35 or 40 pounds of grapes. Round 5-gallon plastic buckets hold 22 to 24 pounds.
Bulk containers are usually not needed when home winemakers purchase grapes by the ton. Large quantities of grapes can be hauled easily by lining the bed of a pickup truck with a sheet of 4-mil polyethylene. The fruit is dumped directly into the truck.
Open Fermenters
Many home winemakers use 32-gallon plastic trash cans for fermenting red wine. Plastic trash cans are inexpensive and light weight. Open red fermenters should only be filled to 80 percent of capacity to prevent over flowing, so 32-gallon trash cans can ferment about 230 pounds of crushed grapes. Almost 400 pounds of crushed grapes can be fermented in a 55-gallon polyethylene drum with the head removed, and a plastic, half-ton bin will ferment about 1400 pounds of crushed grapes.
Beer Kegs
Surplus, stainless steel beer kegs make excellent wine storage containers. Modern beer "kegs" hold 15.5 gallons, and they are readily available. Beer kegs cost about a dollar a gallon. Stainless steel beer kegs are easy to clean, and they last forever. A #11 stopper or a silicone bung can be used to seal beer kegs.
Oak Barrels
Wine barrels are made in two standard sizes, 200 liters and 225 liters. Two hundred-liter barrels hold approximately 52 gallons, and 225-liter barrels hold about 59 gallons. Most American-made barrels hold 52 gallons, and most French barrels hold 59 gallons. Half-barrels hold 25 to 30 gallons.
Bungs
Some winemakers place small pieces of cloth or burlap under wooden bungs. Although popular, such an arrangement allows considerable air to enter the barrel, and this technique should not be used for quality table wine production. Although more expensive, silicone rubber bungs are much better than old fashion wood bungs. Rubber bungs seal the barrels tightly, and they are easy to remove. Best of all, they do not deform the bung holes in expensive barrels.
Container Case Capacity
Five-gallon glass carboys contain two cases of wine. Full 15.5-gallon beer kegs hold six cases. A 27-gallon polyethylene drum holds about 11 cases. A 52-gallon barrel holds 22 cases of wine, and a 59-gallon barrel holds 24 cases. A 165-gallon polyethylene tank holds about 68 cases, and a 1000-gallon tank contains 415 cases.
SANITATION
Maintaining sanitary conditions in the home winery entails more than just hosing down the garage floor. Sanitation activities include washing old bottles, cleaning the equipment, disposing of pomace, controlling ants and fruit flies, keeping winemaking and storage areas clean, etc., etc.
Wash Equipment Before and After Use
Washing the winemaking equipment just before use is necessary for good sanitation. Washing the equipment immediately after use saves the winemaker a great deal of time. Grape residues are easy to wash away when wet, but dried residues are very difficult to remove.
Spray Nozzle
A hose equipped with a good spray nozzle is a necessity in the crush area. The nozzle should produce a fine spray and a solid stream. The hose and nozzle will be dropped from time to time, so the nozzle should be well designed and constructed of strong materials. Hang the hose from a hook conveniently placed in the crush area because the hose and nozzle will be used often.
Hoses
Transfer hoses can remain wet for long periods, and then mildew can grow on the inside surfaces. Hoses should be washed immediately after use and hung on a wall with both ends down, and the hoses will drain completely. Full strength Clorox will remove mold and other stains from the inside surfaces of hoses (or other difficult to reach places). However, surfaces treated with Clorox must be rinsed carefully. Use Clorox with care, and do not breathe the fumes.
Dirty Bottles
Dirty wine bottles usually contain mold, yeast and a variety of bacteria. Dirty bottles are always a potential source of contamination, and home winemakers should not store dirty bottles in the winemaking area. The bottles should be washed as they are collected. Then the clean bottles should be stored upside down in clean cardboard cases.
Liquid dish washing detergents are difficult to rinse away when used for washing old wine bottles, and they can leave unsightly water spots. A cup of automatic dishwasher powder in three-gallons of very hot water cleans bottles well, and the residue rinses cleanly. A teaspoon of liquid detergent should be added to the dishwasher powder if the water is hard.
Power Bottle Brush
Most bottle brushes have a loop on the end of the wine handle. Some home winemakers remove the loop and chuck the wine handle in an electric drill. This "power" bottle brush will remove stubborn bottle residues quickly, but this method must be used with care and with low drill speeds.
Jet Washer
A "jet" carboy washer attached to a water facet or hose is a great convenience for washing old wine bottles. These washers are inexpensive, and they save much time and large amounts of hot water.
Auto Wheel Brush
Brushes with long handles can be purchased in large automotive supply stores. These stiff-bristled brushes are used for washing auto hub caps and wheels, but home winemakers find them handy for scrubbing all kinds of winemaking equipment. The long handles make these brushes particularly useful for scrubbing the inside surfaces of small fermenters and tanks.
FERMENTATION TECHNIQUES
This section contains practical information and several suggestions on how to cope with some common problems encountered during primary fermentation.
Under-ripe Grapes
Trying to make a dry, red table wine from under-ripe grapes is seldom successful. When under-ripe fruit is used, wine flavor and bouquet will be lacking, and wine color will be poor. Most red grape varieties are not ripe until the sugar level reaches about 23 Brix. However, home winemakers often have little control over when their grapes are picked, and under-ripe fruit is often encountered. Under-ripe, red grapes can be used to make blush wine, and the low alcohol content, skimpy flavors and the high acid levels are more appropriate for blush wine.
Most white grapes are not ripe until the sugar level reaches about 22 Brix, and Chardonnay grapes are often picked above 23 Brix. Riesling grapes, on the other hand, are usually picked at low Brix values before they lose their greenish color. Overripe, white grapes are often used to produce dessert wines, and under-ripe white grapes can be used to produce sparkling wine.
Adding sugar to under-ripe grapes seldom produces a high quality wine. The extra sugar increases the alcohol content, but the added sugar does nothing to improve the poor color, the puny flavor or the lack of varietal intensity. Sugared wines are usually too alcoholic, pale and under flavored. In addition, under-ripe, red grapes often produce wine with unpleasant "green" or "vegetal" characteristics.
Sulfur Dioxide
Making and aging high quality table wine without using small quantities of sulfur dioxide is difficult. Most winemakers add small quantities of sulfur dioxide when the grapes are crushed. About 1/4 level teaspoon of sulfite powder for every 100 pounds of grapes is the right amount.
Practically all of the free sulfur dioxide disappears during fermentation, so winemakers add 1/4 level teaspoons of sulfite powder for every five gallons of wine when fermentation is complete. This quantity of sulfite powder will add an additional 40 milligrams per liter of sulfur dioxide to the new wine. However, about half the sulfur dioxide will combine with other materials in the wine quickly, and only about 20 milligrams per liter of free sulfur dioxide will remain in the new wine.
The Table below shows how much sulfite powder is needed to produce 25, 50 and 75 milligrams per liter (ppm) of sulfur dioxide in various quantities of wine. The values given in the Table are grams. For example, the Table shows that 5.8 grams of sulfite powder produce 50 milligrams per liter of SO2 in 15 gallons of wine.
Gals of Wine |
25 mg/l SO2 |
50 mg/l SO2 |
>75 mg/l SO2 |
| 1 | 0.2 | 0.4 | 0.6 |
| 2 | 0.4 | 0.8 | 1.2 |
| 3 | 0.6 | 1.2 | 1.8 |
| 4 | 0.8 | 1.6 | 2.4 |
| 5 | 0.9 | 1.8 | 2.7 |
| 10 | 1.8 | 3.6 | 5.4 |
| 15 | 2.9 | 5.8 | 8.7 |
| 20 | 3.8 | 7.6 | 11.4 |
| 30 | 5.7 | 11.4 | 17.1 |
| 40 | 7.6 | 15.2 | 22.8 |
| 50 | 9.5 | 19.0 | 28.5 |
| 60 | 11.4 | 22.8 | 34.2 |
Wine should always be tested just before bottling time, and the free sulfur dioxide content should be adjusted to about 25 milligrams per liter. Wines bottled with less than 20 to 30 milligrams per liter of free sulfur dioxide oxidize quickly, and they are short lived.
Hydrogen Sulfide
All wine yeasts produce small quantities of hydrogen sulfide gas (rotten egg smell) during fermentation, but under normal conditions, the quantities produced are very small and of little consequence. The primary cause of excessive amounts of hydrogen sulfide is elemental sulfur on the grapes. Sulfur is used to control mildew in vineyards, and sometimes excessive amounts of sulfur remains on the grapes. Here, the winemaker should complete fermentation, and then copper sulfate can be used to remove the hydrogen sulfide. Some types of wine yeasts produce more hydrogen sulfide than others. Montrachet yeast is a particularly bad offender, and it should not be used with grapes containing sulfur residues.
Besides the sulfur problem, yeast often produces objectionable quantities of hydrogen sulfide gas when the grapes lack nitrogen, micro-nutrients or vitamins. Commercial wineries and some home winemakers added small quantities of yeast nutrients and a substance called pantothenic acid to fermentations specifically to reduce the production of hydrogen sulfide. Pantothenic acid is a common vitamin, and it can be purchased at any drugstore.
Crushing by Hand
A mechanical crusher is not necessary for making red wine. Several hundred pounds of fruit can be crushed in a few hours using the following technique. (1) Put a clean plastic milk crate on a clean plastic trash can. (2) Put a few pounds of grapes in the crate. (3) "Scrub" the grapes through the holes in the bottom of the crate into the trash can. (4) Remove the stems from the crate. (5) Add a few more pounds of fruit and repeat. Some grapes will not be crushed, but whole grapes are not a problem. The juice from the uncrushed grapes will be recovered when the fermentation is pressed.
Punching Down
A handy gadget for punching down small fermentations can be made quickly with a few hand tools. Find a small block of wood and an old broom stick. A 6 x 6 x 1« inch piece of wood is fine. The exact size is not important. Bore a hole in the middle of the wood block, apply glue and insert the broom stick. The new "puncher downer" will be easier to keep clean if it is finished with three or four coats of varnish.
Skin Contact Time
Most of the red pigment and fruit flavors are extracted during the first few days of skin contact. Four or five days of skin contact are enough to produce a quality product when the grapes are ripe. Tannins continue to be extracted for many days.
Cooling Hot Fermentations
Fermentations can become violent when warm red grapes are fermented in hot weather. Much heat is produced, and yeast cells can die when fermentation temperatures exceed 90 degrees for several hours. Such conditions require prompt action, and fermentation temperature must be reduced quickly. Stainless steel containers can be cooled easily by flowing cold water over the outside surfaces. Sometimes small wineries use blocks of dry ice to cool hot fermentations. Home winemakers often fill plastic milk containers with clean water and keep the containers in their freezer. Later, the sealed containers of ice can be placed in hot fermentations to reduce the temperature. All winemakers try to avoid fermenting hot fruit.
Completing Fermentation
Fermentation may be complete when three conditions are met. First, check if the bubbling has stopped and make sure the wine is still and quiet. Second, make sure the hydrometer reads less than zero Brix. Third, measure the Brix for several days and be sure the hydrometer reading remains constant.
Beginning winemakers often have trouble deciding when fermentation has finished. The above procedure is useful, but the only way to be sure fermentation has finished is to measure the residual sugar in the wine. Clinitest tablets can be purchased at most large drugstores, and these tablets are a very convenient way of measuring small quantities of sugar in wine. Use the "5-drop" method. When the sugar content measures less than 1/4 percent, the wine is considered dry.
Short Range Hydrometers
"Plus and minus five" short range hydrometers are very useful for monitoring sugar content near the end of fermentation. These hydrometers have a special scale. Zero Brix is in the center of the scale, and plus five degrees and minus five degrees run in each direction from the zero point. The scale is large, and 0.1 degree Brix can be read easily.
CELLAR TECHNIQUES
Cellar operations start when fermentation is complete and continues until the wine is released. Cellar operations include clarification, stabilization, bulk aging, etc.
Hot and Cold Stabilization
All white and blush wines should be both hot and cold stabilized before bottling. Many winemakers use the following technique to accomplish both stabilization steps in a single operation. Three teaspoons of dry bentonite and a cup of hot water are used for each 5 gallons of wine. The water is placed in the blender, and the blender is run at high speed while the bentonite is added slowly. The bentonite mixture is chilled in a refrigerator for 24 hours, and then the mixture is stirred into the wine. After the bentonite addition, the wine is placed in a refrigerator, and the temperature control is set to the coldest position. After a couple of weeks in the refrigerator, the cold wine is racked into a clean container. Bubbling and splashing should be minimized because cold wine oxidizes easily.
Gelatin
Gelatins are useful for fining astringent red wines, and a suitable gelatin can be found in the canning section of most grocery stores. "Knox" gelatin comes in a box containing four handy, pre measured envelopes. Be sure to buy an unflavored gelatin.
Power Stirring Tool
Small wine containers can be mixed easily with a clean wooden dowel. However, stirring a barrel or small tank of wine is not so easy, and a special stirring tool can be very helpful. A variety of stirring tools can be purchased, or a propeller type stirrer can be made easily. First, form a small propeller by cutting and bending a piece of stainless steel sheet. Drill a hole in the center of the propeller blade and bolt the blade to a 36-inch length of 1/4 inch stainless-steel rod. Secure the propeller with two stainless steel nuts and washers. A barrel of wine or a small tank can be quickly mixed with the homemade stirrer and a small electric drill.
Oak Chips
Many home winemakers add oak chips to red wines stored in glass, plastic or stainless containers. About 2 oz of oak chips for every 10 gallons of wine is a good starting quantity. The chips can be placed in a nylon bag and suspended in the wine, or the chips can be added directly to the container. The wine should be tasted twice a month to make sure the wine does not get too "oakey." When the wine has the desired oak character, remove the bag of chips, or rack the wine off the loose chips into a clean container. If more oak character is wanted, additional chips can be added anytime.
Wine Filter
Inexpensive but effective wine filters can be made from standard, 10-inch cartridge type water filters. These filters are available at hardware stores, and a variety of cartridges are manufactured to fit these standard housings. Five-micron water filter cartridges are available at hardware stores. These cartridges are inexpensive, and they are useful for rough filtering large quantities of wine. However, a 5-micron cartridge is quite porous and will not completely clarify dirty wine. Most home winemakers use 1, 0.5 and 0.2 micron cartridges for filtering wine at bottling time. See photo at the end of this chapter.
Wine Filter Use
All filter media should be washed before any wine is filtered. First, completely assemble the filter system, and then flush the system with several gallons of clean water. The water coming out of the filter should be tasted to make sure no "paper" taste remains. If the rinse water tastes clean, the filter is drained and used. Washing is continued if the water has a paper taste.
Some winemakers prefer to wash the complete filter system with a 1 percent citric acid solution. The citric acid seems to remove the paper taste quickly, and the acid helps sterilize the filter. After the acid solution is removed, the filter system is washed with clean water. A short length of plastic tubing permanently attached to a hose connector is handy for flushing small filters.
Storing Filter Cartridges
Used filter cartridges are difficult to maintain, but the following method works well. Immediately after use, the filter should be back flushed with several gallons of clean water. Then the water is drained, and the housing is filled with a 50% ethyl alcohol solution (inexpensive 100 proof Vodka). The inlet and outlet of the housing are tightly sealed with small rubber stoppers, and the filter is stored in a cool place. When the filter is needed, the alcohol is drained and the housing is flushed with clean water. Set the alcohol aside, so it can be reused later.
BOTTLING
Bottling is the last major step in the winemaking process. Lots of things can go wrong, so bottling is a difficult operation for many home winemakers. Ways of avoiding several common bottling problems are discussed below.
Bottling Supplies
In 1997, sealed bags of one thousand, number one, wine corks sold for about $135. The cost of new glass ranged from $4.50 to $6.50 per case, and re-sterilized glass sold for $3.50 to $4.50 a case. A carton of 4800 fancy, heat-shrink, capsules sold for $130.
Handling Bottles
Plastic milk crates are a convenient way of handling wine bottles. Plastic crates are handy containers for washing used bottles and for filling bottles. These crates are strong enough to hold full bottles easily. Milk crates are easy to keep clean, and they are always useful in the home winery. Standard size, plastic milk crates hold about 20 bottles.
Softening Corks
Hard corks can be softened by soaking in cold water for a few hours. Excessive cork water is undesirable because the water stains the top of the corks and makes a mess. After soaking, the excess water should be poured off. Then the container of corks should be covered with a clean cloth, and the corks should be allowed to drain overnight.
Old corks can be softened quickly in a microwave oven. Rinse the corks in cold water, and then seal the wet corks in a plastic freezer bag. Heat the bag of corks in a microwave oven for a short time. A bag containing 50 corks might require a one minute exposure at a 50 percent power setting. However, the time depends on the microwave oven, and some experimentation may be needed.
Corks burn easily, so always use the minimum power and time necessary. The intense microwave energy may also be effective in sterilizing the corks. Please note this technique should not be used with paraffin coated corks.
Bottle Filling
Always avoid oxidation by not splashing or bubbling the wine when bottles are filled. Small pressure heads reduce bubbling, so the wine container should be just two or three feet higher than the bottles. Bottles should be filled from the bottom slowly until no more than 1/4 inch gap remains between the wine and the bottom of the cork. Filling time can be reduced by using a large diameter, wand type bottle filler.
Making Labels
Inexpensive labels can be made easily with a home computer. A variety of art work can be included, and professional quality labels can be produced easily if a scanner and color printer are available. Most light weight papers wrinkle badly when the glue is applied, but many medium weight bond papers are suitable for labels. Four, six or eight labels should be made from standard 8.5 X 11 inch sheets of paper, and very little paper will be wasted if the layout is done carefully.
Label Paster
Small wineries use a label pasting machine when small lots are labeled by hand. These handy machines quickly apply just the right amount of glue to the back surface of any label. Unfortunately, these little machines sell for several hundred dollars, and most home winemakers do not produce enough wine to justify the cost.
Gluing Labels by Hand
White Elmers glue is often a satisfactory adhesive for applying labels printed on heavy weight paper. Use a wide, short bristled brush to apply glue to the back of the labels. Pasting is easier when a piece of stiff cardboard smaller than the label is used. The label is placed face down on the cardboard, and then the glue is applied with the brush.
A "glue stick" is a very convenient adhesive when only a few bottles are being labeled.
SUMMARY
Some winemaking procedures are done only once each year, so several crush seasons are needed for novice winemakers to develop certain skills. Beginning winemakers can learn basic winemaking techniques and get many useful ideas by visiting other home winemakers or small commercial wineries. Visiting other winemakers is an enjoyable way to gain practical information quickly.
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