Urban Farm Hub

This year the harvest was much less than last year but we still have enough plums and grapes to make some wine.

This year I am doing the same testing and measuring we did last year.  Here is a list of basic supplies for making wine.  You can get these from local shops or on-line.  The nice thing about shopping locally is you can ask questions and make sure you are really getting the right sized tubing and so on.

• Fruit – it’s ok to use fruit that isn’t appetizing to eat out of hand but it shouldn’t be rotten or too infested with insects.
• Large container for initial fermentation – I am using a huge canning pot and a dairy pail.  The mixture expands as it ferments so make sure you have room or you’ll have a mess to clean up when it overflows.
• Carbuoy – this is a large glass or plastic container for fermentation.
• Airlock and stopper – this goes on top of the carbuoy and lets fermenting gas escape but doesn’t let air in to contaminate your mixture.
• Sugar – most recipes call for added sugar.  This turns into alcohol as it ferments.
• Cleaning solution – it’s important to clean all your bottles and equipment.  You can buy a powder that is mixed in water and doesn’t need to be completely rinsed off.
• Campden tablets – these are crushed and put in the initial mixture to kill off bacteria and wild yeast.
• Wine yeast – this is the good yeast that you add in to ferment your fruit.
• Acid blend – you will need to adjust the acid level of your mixture and often add in a bit more acid.
• Hydrometer – this is to measure the specific gravity of your mixture and while I found it a bit intimidating at first, it’s actually very easy to use once you do it a couple of times.
• pH test strips or acid titration kit – I started off trying to use pH strips and found them quite hard to interpret.  They come in different ranges and the range you want for wine is a pH level of 3.4 to 3.8.  I would get strips that focus on this range.  These strips are pretty cheap so if you are on a budget they might be the way to go.  An acid titration kit is the next step up; mine cost about 10 dollars.  If you are really going to do a ton of wine or beer making then investing in a pH meter may be a good way to go.
• Tubing and siphon – you will need to transfer your mixture or “must” from one container to the next several times.  Using a plunger siphon and tubing makes the job much easier than trying to pour from one container to the other.  You can also leave sediment behind with this method.

Gather your supplies before you get your fruit.  Things move along quickly and not having what you need when you need it is frustrating.  All set?  Here we go!

First wash, then pit and mash up your fruit.

Add crushed campden tablets to the mixture. Wait 24 hours before adding yeast.

Test your mixture for specific gravity. You want a reading between 1.080 and 1.095. If it’s below 1.080 you will need to add sugar, if it’s above 1.095 add water unless you want a very sweet and alcoholic wine.

Test for acidity. If you use pH strips they should be between 3.4 and 3.8.

Here is how to test for acidity using a titration kit:

First draw up 15ml of wine and put it in a clear cup. Put the cup on a white piece of paper.

Add four drops of Phenolophthalein indicator. (This stuff is poisonous so make sure not to get it near any food or drink and dump out your test sample when done.)

Draw up 10ml sodium hydroxide. Drop 1ml into wine solution and swirl. Do this until the solution stays pink. The number of ml equals the acidity level. The level wanted for wine is about 0.70 percent.

This has just turned pink with the last addition.  My mixture was too acidic so I added a sugar water solution until I got the right balance.

With some fruit wines you strain out the fruit right away and with others you leave it in during the initial fermentation. This is white grape and it is one that does get strained. When the specific gravity and acid balance is correct add your yeast.

Cover your yeasty “must”. After 48 hours stir twice a day with a sterilized spoon.

On the third day start checking the specific gravity. When it has dropped to 1.030 strain out the fruit and transfer to a carbuoy.

Today is day six and the specific gravity has dropped. Tomorrow I will check again and it’s racking time!

Keeping out unwanted yeast and bacteria at this stage is helpful. To do this be sure to clean all your equipment well. I like using this One Step cleaner.

Ok! The specific gravity of 1.030 has been reached and it’s time to drain or “rack” the wine into a carbuoy for primary fermenting. Using a siphon pump to get things going is really helpful.

Once the wine has been racked, top the carbuoy with an airlock and stopper. Fill the airlock with some of your sanitizing solution so gas can escape from your wine but air can’t get in.

In one week rack the wine into a freshly disinfected carbuoy.  Now it’s time to be patient and wait 6 weeks before racking again.  At this stage you can add one Campden tablet per gallon.  Rack again at 3 months then again at six months.  Bottling will take place between 7 to 12 months.  Wine then needs to age for 1 to 5 years.  Some wine tastes good early and some is much, much better after being aged.  I will update this post as racking is repeated and will let you know how it goes!