How to Make Alcohol
Decide what fruit you’d like to use to make wine., Visit a homebrew store to purchase wine yeast., Wash everything thoroughly., Remove rotten fruit., Set up a fruit press., Add a packet of wine yeast that is dissolved into water., Insert your...
Step-by-Step Guide
-
Step 1: Decide what fruit you’d like to use to make wine.
You can use grapes, strawberries, cherries or even apples (cider) with this process.
You will need between 12 and 18 lbs. (5.4 to
8.2 kg) of ripe fruit.
Most people suggest that you go the extra step to find organic and/or locally produced fruit.
Insecticides and fertilizers can impart an unpleasant taste to homemade alcohol.
If you don’t have fresh fruit, purchase some 100 percent fruit juice.
It should have a sugar content of 20 percent or more.
Buy a gallon (3.8 l) of juice and skip the next few steps.
You will start with adding the yeast. -
Step 2: Visit a homebrew store to purchase wine yeast.
You will also need two glass gallon (3.8 l) containers, a hydrometer, equipment sanitizer, corks, a corker, a sanitized food pail, airlocks and tubing.
If you want to make apple cider inquire about renting a cider press.
Some presses are available for rent and are necessary for getting the fresh apple juice out of the apples.
Purchase champagne yeast if you are going to make cider or wine from fruit juice. , Fill your sink with professional sanitizer and wash all the equipment according to package directions just before you use it.
Consider buying a special produce wash to ensure the fruit is very clean before it is used. , Pick off stems.
Leaving them in the mix will create bitter wine. , If you don’t have access to one, you can hand crush your grapes or other soft fruit.
Try using a sanitized metal ricer or masher to press the juice out of the pulp.Press the fruit into a two to four gallon (7.6 to
15.1 l) food grade pail.
This is where your initial fermentation will take place.
The act of pressing the fruit releases juice, referred to as “must” in winemaking. , Mix well.
If you are using fruit juice, you can pour out some juice and add the packet of yeast strait into the gallon fruit juice bottle. , You will need a reading of
1.010 (22 degrees Brix) or higher to make the wine.
If it is lower than that, make sugar syrup and mix it in until the hydrometer registers an adequate amount of sugar content.
Make the syrup by dissolving granulated sugar into distilled water on the stove.
Let it cool slightly, then add it by the tbsp. (14.8 ml) until your reading is high enough.
If you are using juice with high sugar content, you will not need to use a hydrometer or add extra sugar.
If your sugar content is too high, you can dilute it with distilled water. , This will allow the CO2 to leave during the fermentation process.
Leave it for seven to 10 days.
Your mixture will need a temperature of approximately 70 to 75 degrees Fahrenheit (21 to 24 Celsius) to ferment.
If your initial fermentation mixture is too cool, wrap an electric blanket around the pail to heat it up gently.
To cool the temperature of the mixture, wrap ice packs around the pail for a little while.
White wines require approximately 55 to 65 degrees Fahrenheit (13 to 18 Celsius). , Pour the contents of the pail into a sanitized glass gallon bucket.
Fill it to the very top. , Let the jug sit for two weeks.
Then, siphon the wine every few weeks to remove further sediment.
Siphoning, or “racking,” wine requires you to place an empty bottle lower than the current fermentation bottle.
Use plastic tubing to create a siphon and allow it to pour into the clean bottle.
Make sure the tubing sits above the sediment, so that you are purifying your wine.If you are making wine from store-bought juice, you will pour in the yeast and insert the airlock.
Wait three days to two weeks to produce alcohol you can bottle., One gallon of wine will make almost five bottles.
Leave a half-inch of space at the top.
Insert your corks with a corker.
Store the wine bottles upright for three days.
Then, store them on their side.
At 55 degrees Fahrenheit (13 Celsius), red wine can be stored for up to one year and white wine can be stored for up to six months. -
Step 3: Wash everything thoroughly.
-
Step 4: Remove rotten fruit.
-
Step 5: Set up a fruit press.
-
Step 6: Add a packet of wine yeast that is dissolved into water.
-
Step 7: Insert your hydrometer into the mixture.
-
Step 8: Cover the pail with a layer of cheesecloth.
-
Step 9: Strain the liquid through a funnel wrapped in cheesecloth to remove the sediment.
-
Step 10: Insert an airlock at the top of the container.
-
Step 11: Bottle the wine after two to three months.
Detailed Guide
You can use grapes, strawberries, cherries or even apples (cider) with this process.
You will need between 12 and 18 lbs. (5.4 to
8.2 kg) of ripe fruit.
Most people suggest that you go the extra step to find organic and/or locally produced fruit.
Insecticides and fertilizers can impart an unpleasant taste to homemade alcohol.
If you don’t have fresh fruit, purchase some 100 percent fruit juice.
It should have a sugar content of 20 percent or more.
Buy a gallon (3.8 l) of juice and skip the next few steps.
You will start with adding the yeast.
You will also need two glass gallon (3.8 l) containers, a hydrometer, equipment sanitizer, corks, a corker, a sanitized food pail, airlocks and tubing.
If you want to make apple cider inquire about renting a cider press.
Some presses are available for rent and are necessary for getting the fresh apple juice out of the apples.
Purchase champagne yeast if you are going to make cider or wine from fruit juice. , Fill your sink with professional sanitizer and wash all the equipment according to package directions just before you use it.
Consider buying a special produce wash to ensure the fruit is very clean before it is used. , Pick off stems.
Leaving them in the mix will create bitter wine. , If you don’t have access to one, you can hand crush your grapes or other soft fruit.
Try using a sanitized metal ricer or masher to press the juice out of the pulp.Press the fruit into a two to four gallon (7.6 to
15.1 l) food grade pail.
This is where your initial fermentation will take place.
The act of pressing the fruit releases juice, referred to as “must” in winemaking. , Mix well.
If you are using fruit juice, you can pour out some juice and add the packet of yeast strait into the gallon fruit juice bottle. , You will need a reading of
1.010 (22 degrees Brix) or higher to make the wine.
If it is lower than that, make sugar syrup and mix it in until the hydrometer registers an adequate amount of sugar content.
Make the syrup by dissolving granulated sugar into distilled water on the stove.
Let it cool slightly, then add it by the tbsp. (14.8 ml) until your reading is high enough.
If you are using juice with high sugar content, you will not need to use a hydrometer or add extra sugar.
If your sugar content is too high, you can dilute it with distilled water. , This will allow the CO2 to leave during the fermentation process.
Leave it for seven to 10 days.
Your mixture will need a temperature of approximately 70 to 75 degrees Fahrenheit (21 to 24 Celsius) to ferment.
If your initial fermentation mixture is too cool, wrap an electric blanket around the pail to heat it up gently.
To cool the temperature of the mixture, wrap ice packs around the pail for a little while.
White wines require approximately 55 to 65 degrees Fahrenheit (13 to 18 Celsius). , Pour the contents of the pail into a sanitized glass gallon bucket.
Fill it to the very top. , Let the jug sit for two weeks.
Then, siphon the wine every few weeks to remove further sediment.
Siphoning, or “racking,” wine requires you to place an empty bottle lower than the current fermentation bottle.
Use plastic tubing to create a siphon and allow it to pour into the clean bottle.
Make sure the tubing sits above the sediment, so that you are purifying your wine.If you are making wine from store-bought juice, you will pour in the yeast and insert the airlock.
Wait three days to two weeks to produce alcohol you can bottle., One gallon of wine will make almost five bottles.
Leave a half-inch of space at the top.
Insert your corks with a corker.
Store the wine bottles upright for three days.
Then, store them on their side.
At 55 degrees Fahrenheit (13 Celsius), red wine can be stored for up to one year and white wine can be stored for up to six months.
About the Author
Jack King
Jack King specializes in technology and innovation and has been creating helpful content for over 4 years. Jack is committed to helping readers learn new skills and improve their lives.
Rate This Guide
How helpful was this guide? Click to rate: