Simple Wine Making (Huckleberries)

This simplified recipe for making wine yielded some of the best tasting wine ever.

Step 1 Collect your materials.

You will need something to drain the berries with.

Comments

[xfirexstarzx]

First off, nice instructable. Secondly, I have three changes I would make to this instructable if it were mine. 1) The plastic jug that you're using for fermentation isn't safe to use for alcohol. the alcohol can dissolve some of the plastic making the wine harmful to you. There is also the problem of the plastic not being smooth and therefore making it hard to sterilize. If anyone is going to make wine, they should stick with glass (Unless they go out and buy a special fermentation bucket made of alcohol resistant material. Even then I wouldn't trust it because of scratches.) 2) The yeast can pose a bit of a problem. I'm not against bread yeast (I've used it quite a bit and nobody ever knows the difference) but you put in way too much yeast. For a batch that size, a teaspoon will be enough yeast to ferment the batch. If you ferment everything too fast, you'll end up with an off flavor. Not to mention an enormous amount of yeast on the bottom of your container. 3) I've never strained a batch of wine. I really don't think cheese cloth is going to remove much more than the fruit from your wine. You still have a bunch of yeast in suspension. A little trick is to siphon the wine off from the fruit and yeast. The fruit floats or sinks. It won't stay in suspension. The inactive yeast sinks. If you siphon the wine out of the middle, you'll get a little yeast (but don't siphon from the top or bottom). Let that wine set for a week and siphon it off again. If you do that a few times, you'll have crystal clear wine VERY little sediment in your bottles.

[joel383]

" the alcohol can dissolve some of the plastic making the wine harmful to you. "

this is a common myth. go to the liquor store, about 1/4 of all the bottles will be plastic. particularly the cheap vodkas. as long as it is food grade plastic there *should* be no problem.

The scratch thing is another debatable item. i use milk jugs and food grade 5gal buckets. Being a bichem/biophysics major, i know that it is a Possible place to harbor bacteria, but in practice i have never had a bad batch. i don't use sanitizer either, i use hot water ~180*F for the containers and boil the implements and all small components...

163.4*F is the temp that most things are pasteurized at. technically it denatures the enzymes in the bacteria killing them.

"2) The yeast" that off flavor is the same as the off flavor of cheap vodka/tequilla diacetyl. pitching the yeast while warm will release more diacetyl in the early stages than the yeast can reabsorb during the secondary stage

[rolltiderusty]

Hi,

You might try putting it in the sun, adding a little sugar and yeast. You may want to buy new yeast in case yours is just not working enough. Also, I shake mine up to get it working when I add stuff.

Good Luck,

Rusty

[joel383]

sun is generally not good in the fermenting process, particularly with beer. photo-chemical reactions will give it a skunky taste

[Whales]

So, I'm under the assumption that this specific recipe makes 1 gallon? I think i might be wrong, so please correct me if so.

[sml7799]

Help,someone? I am in the fermenting stage of wine-making using this method and my balloon isn't inflating nearly as much as the one pictured in this slideshow. It's not flat but it's inflated only slightly. And it hasn't deflated from a fuller state or anything... when I put on the balloon, it puffed up to this size almost immediately, and hasn't changed at all. Is something going wrong? If so, how can I repair? And if not, how will I ever know that it's ready??
Thanks in advance for any assistance u can give...

[fiddleboyster]

I am trying some peach wine like this right now. Has anyone tried nutmeg or cinammon in with the must? I am curious to see how it would taste with peaches. I may just have to try it myself. Also, does it hurt the fermentation to take the balloon off and taste a little even if the balloon is still inflated? A++ on the instructable btw.

[xfirexstarzx]

I tried cinnamon in some hard cider. it ruined the batch. If you have to add it, I would recommend doing it after the primary fermentation.

[jjay10]

I just finished my first batch of this wine and it is absolutely delicious. I used muskadine grapes and it came out very good for my first time.

[air.guitarist]

I just started on my first batch, its cooling right now. I used grapes though. About how long do i ferment it for? After its done fermenting and i strain it i just bottle it? And about how long does it stay good or does it even spoil...sorry for the stupid questions im new at this.

[rolltiderusty]

Fermenting seems to take days not weeks. I did have someone tell me recently that if you use less yeast you can make it take a month or two to ferment fully. I'm not that patient. Yes, after the fermenting all you need to do is strain and bottle it. You may end up straining it more than once. Especially after you have let it sit in the bottle for a week or so. It is not necessary to let it sit before drinking some of it, but it lets a lot of the sediment settle and you get a clearer wine. Wine will last a very long time if you boil water and pour it into your bottle first to sanitize. The cork has to have a good seal and you want to keep it out of the sunlight and away from heat.

[lil jon168]

if you use bread yeast i would recomend using less yeast because it would taste like bread

[pyromaniac21]

any idea how to make it have enough alchohol in it to lite on fire? I kinda like fire.

[lil jon168]

you have to distill it

[isildur0804]

my balloon exploded and i got yeast in my eye i found it better if you use 1 and a half packets of yeast

[pyromaniac21]

and i posted dat coment at 2:48 pm not 11:47 am but whatever GO SLEEPY SLEEPY RULES SO DOES BOB BARKER and AOL

[KlingonAtheist]

My very first batch was with 4 pounds Kiwi Fruit. Absolutely NUMMY! I can't thank you enough. This is the new Christmas/Birthday/Anniversary present.

[brewhaha1]

hey everyone, just a quick question. my fried and i decided to make this on a whim and used a large container of hawiian punch bread yeast and sugar( the measurements of which, we cant be totally sure of) . We understand that this is not the ideal way to make it, but i was just wondering if it will still work. also, one of the ballons was fermenting like crazy, so much that i had to replace the balloon. any thoughts or tips would be appfreciated.

[dbmMD]

can these be substituted with any fruit that has a lot of juice?

[DubRunner]

lastly not to forget proper sanitation of equipment coming in contact with your wine wild yeast can make the whole batch go bad and like mike said i have made more bad batches then good but i'll keep going and trying one key is to pick something you like and brew it over and over and over again to perfect it to your taste. Just remember if it's the best tasting beer or wine to you than who cares what others think. Tell them to go make their own

[Gamernotnerd]

Think my mom would notice if I did this (I'm 12)

[isildur0804]

i'm only 11 and my mom didn't care...

[deth2all]

ya, im telling on you

[Gamernotnerd]

I'm now 13, and my Mom is actually helping, we're using strawberries.

[lil jon168]

lucky that will probly taste good

[kilaldatym]

if i dont have any wine bottles to put my mixture into after the fermenting process would canning jars be ok.... and also i have been reading diffrent ways of making it and alot of them call for the campden tablets? if i use them should they be added in the jug or should i put it in my final bottle.

[aidankeeble]

Love this! tried it and it worked great! :) good work.

[dominickriegle]

When I put the balloon on top of my jug do I poke a smail needle size hole in it? If soe how many holes do I poke?

[cupofsoup]

hay man my first batch was perfect long ago. its working with frozen fruit thats a pain .blueberrys are driving me nuts but anouth of my problems to help the newer berwers this helps to know: when the sugar gets eaten by the yeasty beasty alcohol is made and only so much alcohol can be made when its at this point the alcohol starts killing the yeastybeasty(yeast)and the bacterias so if your like me and pour a glass to early once in a while and you get a up set tummy you know why peace out panhead

[russ5]

How long does it take for the sediment to sink. I made my batch 5 days ago and my fruit (white grape) is still floating. Also, my balloon is not filling up much although it is bubbling like crazy. It seems to be well sealed (I used a couple of bread ties to secure it. HELP!!!

[mikeasaurus]

Hey Russ5, I read your comment and thought I'd reply:

How long does it take sediment to sink?
This varies widely depending on what you made your wine from. Some fruite have more particulates than others, and sometimes the sediment has minimal density and remains suspended, this can last for days, weeks...dare I say months?! Your best bet is to use a bentonite clay mixture (available at your local u-brew store!) which will bind to the particles and sink them. From here you should rack your wine (possible twice) and you've got yourself clear wine.

Balloon:
Your method of attaching your balloon using twist ties is troublesome. The idea behind the balloon (read: airlock) is to allow gasses to escape while keeping foreign air out, it should be a one way system. By using twist ties you are not ensuring a good seal and run the risk of bacteria infecting your batch (I've seen it happen, and it's gross).
If you want the balloon route try attaching it using rubber bands, then use a pin to poke one very tiny hole at the top. this should work for you.

Hope this helps. How did the batch turn out?

[russ5]

Thanks Mikeasaurus! I understand exactly now. Funny you should mention the bentonite clay. Tried it a few weeks ago but it really didn't clear very much. I have since done some reading on the subject of winemaking and have stocked up on the appropriate equipment and chemicals. The batch I made here was awful (I'm sure due to my inexperience), and I have since moved on to apple cider using a REAL airlock. Big difference. It is surprisingly potent and potable. Thanks again for your comment!

[mikeasaurus]

no probs.

One last word of encouragement:
I have yet to meet a brewmaster that has gotten it right from the first batch. I'm a seasoned brewer and I still make the odd batch that turns out wonky (though usually an experimental batch).
We learn from making mistakes, and I would take 10 bunk batches to make 1 unique batch of something I am really proud of.

Another though it to keep a log book detailing the date and process you took for each batch, that way you can avoid mistakes the next time.

Good luck russ!

[russ5]

I appreciate the encouragement and your excellent advice. The log book is most definitely the way to go. Nothing like repeating the same mistakes over and over again! Persistence is truly a virtue in this process.

[lil jon168]

my batch is finished i just have to let it age but i dont no if i want to try it

[AlexTheDude]

Tip: poke small holes in the balloon with a needle or something that it wont explode or pop. did you ever try distilling the wine or is it forbidden there?

[nodnol]

Can anyone suggest an alternative to using a balloon? I'm profoundly allergic to latex...

[lil jon168]

i started my batch last night and the ballon EXPLODED during the night and scared the crap out of me so i just put a napkin and rubber bands to keep it on

[rhanxha]

whoah! awesome. i didn't thought that making wine would be this easy..(it looks easy on the photos) i'll try it some time! (,)

[thewaytolos]

Great Instructable.. This has really peaked my interest and I might have a new hobby which I owe to you. I just got one questions anyone know what the possible dangers are involved with this like can anything go deadly wrong?