This list includes 6 Homemade Wine Tips You Should Remember…

The following areas are important for your homemade wine making. By following the following areas in detail you will make sure to get your recipe performing like it should.

Marking the volume on your Primary Fermentor:

Fill your 23 litre glass or plastic secondary carboy (11.5 litre if using Selection Special wine varieties) with water. Empty this volume into your Primary Fermentor and mark off the water level.

Temperature Factor:

It is important to keep the fermentation temperature constant (70 – 75°F). Yeast cells are sensitive to temperature.

Sanitizing Your Equipment:

Make sure all utensils and equipment are clean before use. Use a chlorine cleaning agent to sanitize your equipment. We suggest preparing a soaking tub solution made from your sanitizing agent. Instruments such as your wine thief, hydrometer, mixing utensils, and thermometer are constantly used – keep these soaking in solution until you need them and remember to rinse them thoroughly before use.

Water Quality:

Be sure to use good quality drinking water.

Racking Tips:

Racking your wine or beer (from primary fermentor to secondary carboy, or into a bottle) involves the risk of incorporating air into your wine or beer. To minimize the risk of “oxidation”:

1. • Avoid splashing of wine when racking. Always keep the end of the siphoning hose below the surface of the liquid.
   • Always make sure that your airlock and bung are securely attached and level of water in airlock is properly maintained.

Cork Quality:

When bottling wine, be sure to use quality corks only. Higher quality corks give better protection against oxidation. Longer corks ( min. 1 3/4”) and those with little or no large fissures are preferable. Natural corks are generally better for long term aging. Check with your retailer for more details on the different styles of cork available.

Chardonnay grape is the most popular type of white wine, found all over the world. The flavor, taste, and aroma of it will though, depending on where it was made and what processing methods were used. Chardonnay has a variety of different styles and flavors, and remains a major type of grape. As a result of it’s popularity, this fine wine spread throughout Europe and other locations of the world such as Australia and California.

As more and more wine makers discovered Chardonnay, the fine wine began to grow quite well in South Africa and other areas as well. With it being a non aroma type wine, oak seems to work very well with it. The richest and most complex are American and French Chardonnay, which are also among the most preferred white wines. Even though it does suffer from fatigue, the flavor and richness of this wine will keep it loved by many for years to come.

Chardonnay originated from the Burgundy and Champagne area of France. Although white Burgundy is a popular wine that is prepared with Aligote, a lesser known grape, the fact remains that white Burgundy can’t be made without the use of Chardonnay grape. What this goes to show, is that Chardonnay grapes have more than a few uses.

In appearance, Chardonnay grapes are green in color with thin skins. The grape is a result of the Pinot and Croatian Blanc grape, which are extinct to this day. Chardonnay on the other hand is still popular, fermented and aged using oak barrels that help to bring out the vanilla flavor the wine is well known for. It can also be aged and fermented using bottles, although it won’t age quite as much as red wine.

Almost all Chardonnay wines are considered to be chilled, making them work extremely well with dishes that contain butter and cheeses. The wines also have less acid content as well, which makes them work well with seafood as well. There are a lot of food that you can pair Chardonnay with, which is what makes it so popular. A lot of fine restaurants serve it as well, especially Italian and seafood restaurants.

The Chardonnay grape can also be used in making Champagne and other types of sparkling wines. Although Chardonnay wine is the most popular use, there are several other uses for the grape that lead to some truly fine wines. Oak is often times used with the wine as well, which provides it with some great flavors as it ages. Although it can be a bit on the expensive side, it still remains one of the most preferred types of wine. You can find it at any wine or alcohol store – making it a great addition to your wine or drink collection.

The interest in Rosé wine has become markedly increased. At one time this type of wine tended to be somewhat looked down upon and was frequently referred to as a ‘summer’ wine due to the fact that it was much lighter than a white wine or red wine.

Today there are many different styles of Rosé wine available on the commercial market and many home based winemakers are experimenting with the different ways to produce Rosé wine. Dry Rosé wines, in particular, have become increasingly popular.

This type of wine may be referred to quite commonly as Rosé; however, it is also referred to a blush wine. Generally, this rather pinkish wine is referred to as Rosé in Europe, where it tends to be drier, while in the United States it is referred to as a blush wine. Most American blush wines tend to be far sweeter than their European counterparts.

If you are looking for a way to expand the types of wine that you produce there are several reasons to consider including a good Rosé as part of your wine repertoire. First, while this type of wine has certainly earned a reputation as a sweet wine that does not necessarily mean that you must produce a very sweet Rosé. A slightly off dry or very dry Rosé wine can still be quite pleasant and fruity. In fact, in some cases, you can produce a Rosé wine that is just as good in terms of quality as a red wine, if not better, in fact.

When deciding to venture into making Rosé wine it is important to keep in mind that there are really three different ways in which to make Rosé wine. The first method is known as “blanc de noir”. This means that a white wine is produced from red grapes. Another method, referred to as saignée, separates juice from red wine. The final method is blending red wine and white wine.

When skin contact is used to create Rosé wine you will need to determine how long you wish to leave the skins of the grapes in contact with the juice because this will determine the color of the wine. In most cases, the time period is quite short; generally between two and three days. After this point the grapes are pressed and you can discard the skins. Keep in mind that the longer you leave the skins in contact with the juice, the deeper the color of the final wine will be. The exact type of grapes that are used with this method can also contribute to the color of the wine. For example, if you use a very deep colored grape then naturally the resulting wine is going to have a deeper pink color.

The saignée method, also referred to as bleeding, is often chosen when you want to have more color and tannin in a red wine while also removing the juice. The juice must be removed very early. This process is referred to as bleeding the vats. You can then ferment the juice separately and produce a Rosé wine that is really more of a by-product of your red wine. Your separate red wine will then be far more intense because the volume of the juice has been reduced.

Blending is a very simple process that involves mixing red wine and red wine in order to add color to the red wine. Most wine makers have moved away from this method; however. Most people prefer to use one of the first two methods mentioned above. Primarily the only region in the world where blending is still used to produce a blush wine is Champagne, France.

When you begin making your first blush or Rosé wine you may find that you need to experiment some in order to find what you like best. If you have tried blush wines previously you may already have an idea of whether you prefer a dry wine or a sweet wine. Experimenting with different methods as well as different types of grapes; however, will aid you in finding out which method you prefer and which one produces the most agreeable blush wines.

Consider the space you have to work with, the size and weight of the unit and make sure to add the additional weight for the wine which averages about 3 pounds per bottle. When building a new home the best time to think or install a wine cellar would be when the home is being built, make sure the specs include such things as a cooling system, shelving and storage, if you live in an existing house find a space and make sure you plan it out well.

The degree and the speed of the temperature change are critical to successfully storing and aging wine. Expertise lies in getting the temperature just right. Temperature is at the top of the list for the reason that it is the single most important factor to consider when planning or installing your own wine cellar.

Modular wine racks are a great investment because they can be modified to fit anywhere plus they are not expensive and they come in many different finishes and grains. Decorative racks are available in a number of different styles, ranging from metal racks to wrought iron racks. There are many different types of wine cellar racks to install in your wine cellar, the types are wooden, metal and there many others. It is extremely essential to carefully store the wine bottles in the cellars and wine racks seem to be the only possible solution to this need.

Having a system that can cool wine is very important especially in a wine cellar, if you don’t have a wine cooling system the wine cellar is not worth the bottles in the cellar, the cellar needs to be cool to operate correctly. Wine coolers can be either free standing, built in with the wine cellar or can be hidden under the counter. To keep the correct temperature in your wine cellar you need to invest in good cooling system, the cooling system will maintain the temperature and humidity and keep the wine tasting perfectly. The coolers vary in size, some having the capacity to hold two to four bottles, while others have larger capacities of up to 50 bottles.

Wine cellars and racks for the home allow the individual wine lover to convert any space in their home into an instant cellar in a matter of moments. There are many different kinds of wine cellars, there are case storages, triangular shelves, curved corners, half weights and many others.

The advantage of having a wine cellar is that you don’t have to go out and get a bottle of wine every time you are ready to sit down and eat, or want to enjoy a glass. Some of the popular wine cellar accessories are metal racking, kneeling butlers, wine chillers, wine coolers, decorative bottle corkers, corkscrews, wine tags, bottle openers, and wine markers.

The great thing about wine cellars is that you can sit back and enjoy a bottle of wine that you chose from you wine cellar. Bottles should be stored on their side so that the cork remains moist and they should also not be exposed to vibration or temperature change.