Homemade wine-cheap, easy and not too darn bad

[steps]

I read a post online and found that's really interesting and funny. Wish you guys would like this.

"It's as easy as buying a reuseable equipment kit (about $65) and the "juice box" (starting at $55) at a brew/wine supply store. I invest an hour every week or two for a month and end up with 30 bottles of good-enough-for-around-the-campfire wine. Or mix with a little soda for the highballs that mom used to make. We're trying the red for sangrias this weekend.

I adhere a handmade "Happy Camper" label and now have an inexpensive gift when needed. After the equipment kit, it's about $2/bottle. I won't be breaking the camping liquor budget anymore. Just grab a few bottles and go!

Note: I make my wine in my non-moving house as the sloshing ain't good for the fermentation process."

[TroyS]

Re: Homemade wine-cheap, easy and not too darn bad

Sounds really interesting, steps. Would you know how long is the shelf life of the homemade wines?

[arturo7]

Re: Homemade wine-cheap, easy and not too darn bad

5 gallons apple juice
2 lbs corn sugar
one 5g packet Moncharet wine yeast
wait at least one month, 3 is better
add 3/4 cup corn sugar for bottling, wait one week

ages in the bottle for years

[Beer Me!]

Re: Homemade wine-cheap, easy and not too darn bad

What are you adding the 3/4 cup of corn sugar for when you bottle? To prime? Seems similar to Apfelwein just without instructions.

[Beer Me!]

Re: Homemade wine-cheap, easy and not too darn bad

Let me suggest something done the "right way." This is Edwort's Apfelwein recipe. Here is the link to the original post. Just as easy to make, but with proper instruction. I have provided links throughout this post for those of you unfamiliar with the equipment and/or instructions.

Apfelwein (German Hard Cider)

This took 1st Place at the 2007 Alamo City Cerveza Fest BJCP sanctioned competition for the Cider and Apple Wine Category and 2nd Place for Best of Show for Meads & Ciders!

Ingredients

5 Gallons 100% Apple Juice (No preservatives or additives) I use Tree Top Apple Juice
2 pounds of dextrose (corn sugar) in one pound bags
1 five gram packet of Montrachet Wine Yeast

Equipment

5 Gallon Carboy (I use a Better Bottle)
Carboy Cap or Stopper with Airlock
Funnel

1. First sanitize the carboy, airlock, funnel, stopper or carboy cap.
2. Open one gallon bottle of apple juice and pour half of it into the carboy using the funnel.
3. Open one bag of Dextrose and carefully add it to the now half full bottle of apple juice. Shake well.
4. Repeat Steps 2 and 3, then go to step 5.
5. Pour in the mixture of Apple Juice and Dextrose from both bottles into the carboy.
6. Add all but 1 quart of remaining 3 gallons of apple juice to the carboy.
7. Open the packet of Montrachet Yeast and pour it into the neck of the funnel.
8. Use the remaining quart of juice to wash down any yeast that sticks. I am able to fit all but 3 ounces of apple juice into a 5 gallon Better Bottle. You may need to be patient to let the foam die down from all shaking and pouring.
9. Put your stopper or carboy cap on with an airlock and fill the airlock with cheap vodka. No bacteria will live in vodka and if you get suckback, you just boosted the abv.

There’s no need to worry about filling up a carboy so full when you use Montrachet wine yeast. There is no Kreuzen, just a thin layer of bubbles. I'm able to fit all but 4 oz. of my five gallons in the bottle. Ferment at room temperature.

It will become cloudy in a couple of days and remain so for a few weeks. In the 4th week, the yeast will begin to drop out and it will become clear. After at least 4 weeks, you can keg or bottle, but it is ok to leave it in the carboy for another month or so. Racking to a secondary is not necessary. It ferments out very dry (less than 0.999, see here)

If you want to bottle and carbonate, ¾ cup of corn sugar will work fine. Use as you would carbonate a batch of beer.

Remember to reserve judgment till after 3 glasses. It grows on you.

[Beer Me!]

Re: Homemade wine-cheap, easy and not too darn bad

GENERAL QUESTIONS
compiled by Dammed Squirrels from the first 37 pages of this thread. Thanks DS!

How does it taste?
It ferments quite dry. Some people have tried different yeasts in order to achieve a sweeter taste. It may take you a few glasses to get a feel for the flavor. It is very reminiscent of a sort of apfelwein produced locally in Germany. There really is no comparable product in the UnitedStates. It's drier and less sweet than commercial hard ciders.

What is the difference between Apfelwein and hard cider?
EdWort says, “Most ciders are a bit sweeter. Ciders and Apfelwein are about 6% abv, but I like the little boost I give it with 2 pounds of Dextrose. It adds no body or flavor and still tastes like Possmann's Apfelwein, only it will kick your butt much quicker.”

Is this like Apfelmost / Apfel Korn?
No. Apfel Korn is a german liqeur made from wheat spirits. Apfelmost is spontaneously fermented with fresh-pressed apples or apple juice. It is probably similar, but the results may vary as a result of the spontaneous fermentation. Either way, Apfelmost is most certainly has a lower alcohol content since the initial gravity is not increased by the use of concentrate or corn sugar.

What’s the difference between apple juice and cider?
Cider is made by pressing apples. Juice is then filtered to remove all of the stuff that makes it cloudy.

Can I use apple cider instead?
Sure! You can use whatever you want. However, there is not enough information in this thread to give you any better details as to how it will turn out. I recommend starting a new thread or ask more experienced cider-makers.

What kind of Apple Juice should I use?
Ideally, you want to use 100% natural apple juice with no preservatives. The only acceptable preservative is ascorbic acid, which is a source of vitamin C and does not affect fermentation. Pasteurized juice is preferred, since it will have less bacteria.

How much will this recipe cost me?
5 gallons of Apfelwein can be made for between 20 and 25 dollars.

What else can you do with this recipe?
EdWort says, "this makes a great Grog in the wintertime. Take a quart in a sauce pan, add some rum, turbinado sugar, and float a cinnamon stick in it and simmer for a while. Serve hot in mugs. It'll warm you right up."


GENERAL WARNINGS

Excessive consumption of Apfelwein WILL get you drunk at warp speed.

Drink a quart of water and take 3 aspirin before going to sleep tol help reduce the effects of excessive Apfelwein consumption as well as the urge to call EdWort a M'F**kR!

[Mike]

Re: Homemade wine-cheap, easy and not too darn bad

Yup. The posts above are instructions on how to make wine... or hard cider. AND, it gets more involved and more elaborate until you finally have a brewery section in the camping forums.

Let's keep it REAL simple with stuff you can find in your kitchen:

1. Take any juice from the frozen juice section at the grocery store that is not sulphated and does not contain any preservatives (I like Langers brand because they are good and cheap). Grape and apple will have better results than the exotic flavors.
2. Mix with water as per directions, but reduce the amount of water by about 1/4.
3. Sterilize a quart, half gallon, or gallon jug by adding three tablespoons household bleach into the jug, filling half-full with water, and then swish the mixture around inside the bottle. Pour out the bleach mixture and rinse the bottle well.
4. Fill the bottle half-way with juice.
5. Add 1/4 to 1/2 packet of brewers wine yeast you get at the brew-shop. Don't use bread yeast. Swish the yeast and juice around a bit to disolve the yeast
6. Fill the bottle to the very top - right to the absolute lip of the bottle.
7. Cover the opening of the jug with a piece of aluminum foil. You don't have to put this on real tight.
8. Put the jug into an unused sink or large catch-pan. Set aside in a quiet place
9. In about three days or so, the fermentation will start. when it does, the juice will foam up and spill out of the jug. This is good. This will get rid of a lot of the 'gunk' in the wine. Make sure the aluminum foil stays in place with the juice foam flowing between the aluminum foil and the glass jug.
10. After about a week or two, the fermentation will be mostly done. remove the aluminum foil and put a big balloon or a condom over the lid of the jug (plain latex condom with no spermicide or any other additives, lubricants or chemicals). You might have to use a rubber band to hold it onto the jug.
11. Let it sit for at least two months. The yeast will settle to the bottom of the jug.
12. If you want clear wine, gently siphon the wine from the jug to another container OR, if you don't care, then just pour the wine and drink the cloudy yeasty wine.
13. Note: Do not use the mouth suck siphon method like gasoline-stealing idiots do. Look up easier, cleaner, and more sophisticated methods on the internet. The bacteria in your mouth will immediately start the wine to decay.
14. If this is fun, study up on better and more sophisticated wine making techniques. It is an art and a science.