Archive for September, 2007

Adding Yeast to Wine

Sunday, September 30th, 2007

It will be seen in the recipes that I give 'yeast' without mentioning any  kind. This is because some of you will be using bakers' yeast and others one of the many varieties of wine yeast. In the directions which  accompany the recipes the time to add the yeast is ...

Fermentation Locks in Wine Making Process

Saturday, September 29th, 2007

There is no substitute for the fermentation  lock, although many people use a balloon stretched over the jar instead of  a fermentation lock, and provided this is a tight fit, it will certainly  protect the wine. But this cannot give any indication as to when  fermentation has ceased. The Balloon ...

Book : Windows on the World Complete Wine Course

Friday, September 28th, 2007

Windows on the World Complete Wine Course: 2007 Edition Book Description The Windows on the World Complete Wine Course is simply the bestselling wine book in the United States—it’s a classic. And this new edition contains an additional 16 wonderful pages, including a featured supplement about the olfactory system and ...

Book: The Wine Bible (Paperback)

Thursday, September 27th, 2007

Amazon.com's Best of 2001 Though it drinks deep of its subject, Karen MacNeil's Wine Bible deftly avoids two traps many wine books fall into: talking down to wine novices or talking up to more experienced enophiles. The book avoids these traps through MacNeil's obvious, and infectious, love of her subject, which ...

Maturing During the Wine Making Process

Wednesday, September 26th, 2007

I am afraid I always have to suppress a grin when people ask me how long a wine needs to mature because I know that all they really want to know is how soon they can drink it. It is surprising the number of people who simply ...

How To Store and Siphon, Bottling.

Tuesday, September 25th, 2007

It is almost impossible to pour clear wine from one bottle to another  without stirring up the lees (deposit) - the best method is to siphon the  clear wine at bottling time. First, put the bottle or jar of wine on a table and the empty bottles on a  box or ...

Sterilization during Wine Making

Sunday, September 23rd, 2007

As mentioned, wild yeast and bacteria are likely to be inside bottles, jars  and on corks, etc. Therefore, if we are to prevent them damaging our  wines they must be destroyed. Bitter than boiling bottles, etc., in a pail of  water or baking them in an oven is to use ...

Natural Enemies of Wine Making

Saturday, September 22nd, 2007

The enemies of successful wine-making are wild yeasts and acetic  bacteria. The acetic bacteria which converts alcohol into acetic acid  thereby turning wine to vinegar is ever present in the air. Similarly, the yeasts and spores of fungi which turn wine insipid and flat  or turn it sour are also in ...

The Clearing Process

Friday, September 21st, 2007

With the recipes and methods described here there is no need to use  isinglass or any other aids to clarifying. These wines clear themselves  usually before fermentation has ceased. Indeed, it is usual to have a  brilliantly clear wine a month before fermentation has ceased. If one or  two lots ...

Fermentation Aides

Friday, September 21st, 2007

Most beginners will be content to keep their fermenting wines warm in an airing cupboard or near the boiler in the kitchen. Others will want to know how they can make a special fermenting cupboard. If only two or three jars of wine are fermenting at one time, a ...