Sometimes the waiting is the hardest part – but it’s necessary…

In this world where many struggle to make ends meet, enjoying life is more important than ever. The problem gets compounded when you find yourself craving for a few small pleasures that have now moved out of your reach – such as a good glass of wine occasionally.

People get frustrated when they are unable to have a little enjoyment every once in a while. And when they do, their productivity goes down; their interaction quality gets down, and so on which can catapult a person into depression. It is better to find ways of indulging yourself every now and then, to prevent the possibility of depression. Many times, just a good glass of wine with a good hot meal can do wonders.

Wine can be expensive, true. However, there are many ways in which anyone can make quite good wine right at home with ingredients that are already there on the kitchen shelf. In fact, don’t miss out on this article. This means, you can make good wine at little expense to you, no need fancy tools, etc.

The basic tools you will need to make wine at home are simple too. You will need a container where you could measure a gallon of liquid. Then, you will need a normal cup to measure sugar. You will need a container with cover where you will have to agitate the mixture to mix it well. It has to be covered or you will not be able to shake it vigorously and hence the quality of your home-made wine will suffer.

You will need a water heater, where you will warm a bit of water to dissolve the yeast (or hydrate it). This could be done in a cup also.

Next you will a few balloons – actually you will need only one, but sometimes the balloon bursts and you will need to replace it fast, so it is always good to have 2-3 extra ones on hand. Since the balloon will need to be fixed very tightly to the mount of the container, it is good if you also have some twine or a good rubber band to fix it. It so happens that the fermentation will push the balloon off the container sometimes.

Once the wine is done (you will know the process is over when the balloon that was tied at the mouth of the container deflates) you will need to filter the wine through a strainer into another container. The strainer should be extra-extra fine since anything else will allow the residue pass through, giving you a murky wine. The wine should be totally crystal clear and a great tool is a clean piece of cheese cloth.

Once the wine has been strained thoroughly and has absolutely no dregs in it, your wine is ready for consumption. Before doing so, you would need to store in appropriate containers. Hence, you will need some nice bottles (there are a lot of fancy bottles available at very competitive prices) to pour it in. These bottles should be sealed ideally with a cork. So, for each bottle you should have an appropriately sized cork to the bottle can be sealed for storage.

Storage, brings us to the next step of tool requirement. You can store wine in the fridge – this would be for immediate use – and on a specifically designed for this purpose, wine rack. A wine rack makes it possible to keep the wine bottle in a reclined position, which is the best way to store it. The longer it stays this way, the better the wine becomes. So, the quality of the wine stack should be such that it can be used for a long time.

All in all – these are some basic steps you will need to make your own wine at home.

How to make inexpensive wines from common grocery store items

Not every one of us can afford to have a glass of good wine on our tables with our meals. However, if it were possible, everybody would love to the accompaniment of this beverage. Wine is a drink that has celebrated from time immemorial. There are records that show it brewing and presence on the favorite list from the time man has learnt to cultivate his food.

This beverage is highly recommended for consumption for men, women and even children. The red grape wine in particular has shown some exceptional aging reversal properties, as well as many medical benefits if taken regularly because it is extremely rich in antioxidants.

For those who cannot buy wine, all is not lost. Anyone can make a reasonably good wine with ingredients of your kitchen shelf. This article will show you how to do this. With a little practice you will be able to brew your own inexpensive wine which in taste can compete with the best.

What you will need for your home-made wine

1. Half a cup of sugar
2. 144 ounces of grape juice (about three cans) – ensure that these are 100 percent grape juice and have no other additives
3. A measurement container where could measure one gallon of liquid
4. Two-three ordinary balloons
5. Water – it is recommended to use distilled water, but you could use your normal tap water to further cut the costs
6. A pin which will be used to make a few holes in the balloon(s)
7. Wine yeast. However if you do not have it, your normal baker’s yeast will do just as well, or the yeast you use to make bread. The baker’s yeast is the least expensive
8. For the beginners, who need a bit more orientation and help, it would be good if you ensure you have with you, a measuring cup, a rubber band or a tight rope, a funnel and bottles.

Roll up your sleeves and get ready to make wine

1. Take the funnel and then pour the juice into the container. Pour all the three cans (total 144 ounces) and then pour twice the amount of water. If you have three cans of juice, pour six cans of water.
2. Now, take this whole mixture and mix it thoroughly. Shake it till the mixture becomes totally homogenous.
3. At this point, add the half cup of sugar. Then, shake this mixture again thoroughly. The sugar should totally be dissolved at the end of the shaking / mixing.
4. Now, take the yeast. Following the instructions, you hydrate the yest and get it ready for use. Once the yeast is ready, add this too to the mixture you have and shake it again.
5. Once this is completed, you now tie the balloon to the mouth of the container. Ensure that the balloon has some holes in it before tying it up to the mouth of the container.
6. There is a special way of tying the balloon to the mouth of the container. It should be tightly done (here you could use the string or rubber band to tie it up) and you should ensure that the top of the balloon is not standing up but is inside the mouth of the container.
7. Place this container in a warm place, where it should not be disturbed for at least half a day (12 hours). At the end of this time, you will hear the popping sound of bubbles. This is proof that the yeast is working well.
8. As the days pass (the process would take some 2-3 weeks), the balloon will get inflated with the gas generated by the fermentation process of the grape juice. As long as the balloon is inflated, the process is on. You will know when the wine is done, when the balloon deflates.
9. Your wine is done! Now you will have to pour it slowly through a strainer into whatever bottles you want to store it into. The bottles should preferably be dark in color.
10. Refrigerate and enjoy your wine which cost you almost nothing – but it is YUMMY!

Keep trying – I’ve had so much fun over the past 15 years just experimenting with different methods and I’ll encourage you to also. First – keep with your recipes and tips step by step and then start creating your own concoctions – it’s a blast! Please bookmark and share this site – THANKS!

PS. Shout out to my typo catching friend Eric Hwang, the renowned wine aficionado and fellow foodie with an awesome blog, I highly recommend checking him out at Bricks of Wine.