Winemaking Tutorial - Lesson Three

Mix the Must and Add Yeast

Now it's time to start putting some of the ingredients together. We won't use all of them right now, but we will soon!

  1. Some wine kits come with glucose solids. If these are included in the kit, you'll want to add them to an empty, sanitized fermenting bucket. To do this, mix the glucose solids with a kettle full of boiling water. Stir to dissolve. Add a half gallon of cold water and stir. Proceed to the next step.
  2. Open your wine kit carefully so you do not puncture the pouch that contains the grape concentrate. Open the top with a dull knife or other object, and pour the contents into the sanitized fermenting bucket.
  3. Now take the EMPTY pouch and refill it with spring water (room temperature) a couple of times, then pour this into the fermenter. Do this a couple of times until you have rinsed all the concentrate from the pouch.
  4. Continue filling the fermenter with spring water until you reach the level previously marked on the fermenter (see Lesson Two).
  5. Stir the mixture (called must) with the sanitized plastic spoon or paddle really well.
  6. Now stir it again... remember, stir it really well!
  7. If you have a Wine-Art wine kit, open the package labeled # 1 and add it to a cup full of must (which you have "borrowed" from the fermenter). Blend or shake well and pour this blended solution back into the fermenter and stir!
  8. Now add the wood chips or elderberries (if present in the kit). Elderberries can be tied in a nylon bag for easy removal at the racking phase.
  9. Place the fermenter in a room that will be around 70-75o Fahrenheit. Be sure the fermenter is placed on a high surface (such as a table or workbench) to facilitate racking. Racking wine from a high position to a lower position gives you a greater mechanical advantage. If you place the fermenter on a higher surface now, you won't have to move it later, preventing a possible disturbance of the sediment.
  10. If you have a hydrometer (highly recommended), you should take a sample of must and record the initial specific gravity (SG). We will be measuring the SG of our wine throughout fermentation to mark our progress.
  11. Using a floating thermometer, ensure the temperature of the must is between 65-85o F (18-25o C) before adding yeast.
  12. Now sprinkle the yeast all over the surface of the must. DO NOT STIR. Cover the fermenter (not airtight, but fixed) so no insects or wild yeasts can enter. A small trash bag works perfectly. You are now making WINE! Mark the instruction sheet that came with your kit with the appropriate dates and readings to record what you've done so far.
  13. Within 2-3 days the wine will show signs of fermentation. Vigorous primary fermentation is represented by bubbles or foaming.

 

We'll talk more about primary fermentation in our next lesson.

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