Posts Tagged ‘white wine’

How To Make Wine Rack Tips

Sunday, October 4th, 2009

I know that you’re a wine lover and possibly making your own wine, but have you taken the next step and designed your own wine bottle rack? If you’re like me, you don’t just cherish wine. You cherish all things wine. You should see my wine rack. I built it myself because I am a hardcore wine lover. I also make my own wine, but that is not what I’m writing to talk to you about. The purpose of this article is to give you some knowledge on wine racks and why you should make yours a great one.

As we know, wine racks are meant to store our wine bottles.  A lot of people place their wine racks in closets or basements.  This always baffles me because having a wine rack in your house as both a place to store the wine and a decorative piece is a great thing!  My wine rack is easily the center of attention in my house when I have people over.  People love looking at the types of wine that that I have made.  So, if you’re one of those types of people that think the closest is the best place to store your wine, it’s time to get creative.

One important rule that you must keep in mind is that wine should not be stored in an area where the cork may dry out.  If you live in a dry climate, make sure you have a humidifier in the room that has the wine rack.  If the corks dry out, your wine will become oxidized, therefore spoiling the flavor and hard work that went into making it.  However, if you use synthetic corks (which I do) you will not have this problem.

You will want your wine to be stored at a moderate room temperature.  Do not store the wine rack where your wine will be exposed to heat and sun light.  This is also bad for the wine and will, again, spoil the festivities quicker than you can say, “more wine?”  Yes, I am funny.

I spoke earlier about making your own wine rack.  This is definitely something that I think you should think about doing.  For all the wine makers out there, we know how fulfilling making and bottling your own wine is.  Take this the next step of the way and build your own wine rack to store the bottles on.  I don’t know much about woodcraft.  I learned how to build the rack from a couple of guides out there.  But my wine rack is awesome.  It is made from maple wood.  I then painted it red and applied ‘damage’ to give it an old look.  Like I said, when I have people over, they cannot stop staring at it.  My wine rack get’s more attention than me which makes me sad.  I find myself in the corner during parties jealous of the wine rack that all of the ladies attach themselves to.

Your next step is to make your own wine because that, my friends, will impress all of your friends and family.

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Wine Tasting Basics

Wednesday, September 23rd, 2009

Wine Tasting Is Importanthow_to_make_wine_3

As a wine maker, I have learned through my tests and trials that wine tasting is, in itself, an art.  It is something that will heighten your enjoyment for wine and make it that much more special.  It is a science as well as you must be able to tell early on whether your latest creation is going to be one that will make it past the fermentation process.

If you are thinking about getting started in the amazing hobby that is wine making, then keep these tips in the back of your mind when you are taste testing your creation (which you should do at least once every other day):

Appearance – The appearance of your end product should be one that is not cloudy in nature (unless you are making unfiltered wine).  You can use a piece of paper held up behind the wine glass to check the color, and to see if there are sediments in your wine.

Smell – Definitely one of the most critical components.  You always want to smell your wine before you taste it.  Swirl the wine around in your glass and sniff in the aromas above the rim.  Concentrate.  You will get good at this over time.  You will be able to pick up the aromas of grape, wood, leather, and anything else you may have added to the mix.

Taste - Now the best part!  Taste your creation.  Take a sip and fill maybe half of your mouth.  Move it back over your tongue.  You can even “chew” it as to get a better taste.  Ask yourself what your first impressions are.  Is it sweet?  Acidic?  Bitter?  Does the red wine make your mouth dry?  Silky and smooth or almost watery?  Drink it down or spit it out.  How does it taste in your mouth after wards?  The longer the finish in your mouth, the better the wine.

You will notice that when you create your own wine, the taste is of the highest quality.  It isn’t uncommon for me to bottle a batch of wine that is better tasting than the $200 bottles you find aging at restaurants.  Wine tasting is one of the most enjoyable parts of making wine.  As you make more and more batches, you will become better and better at testing.  Your enjoyment for wine will skyrocket as you’ll be able to taste the quality in all wines from every walk of life.

Click here to go to the web site that helped me make great wine at home.

Why don’t you begin your journey of wine making?  There are great guides out there that will teach you how to make wine in your own.  I think I paid around $50 to start and now my setup is much larger than that! 

Jeff

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How To Make Wine – My Story

Tuesday, September 22nd, 2009

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People often ask me how to make wine and how I got started.  I remember a couple of years ago when my me and my older brother were going to the same college, he made his own Mead in his basement.  Mead is an alcoholic drink made from honey and water, and my brother’s tasted sooooo good.  This was one of my first introductions to making wine in your own home.

Unfortunately, my brother is now at Western Michigan getting his PHD, so I no longer have access to his mead making skills.

I decided for myself that I would focus on making red wine instead of mead.  I thought it would require a lot more work, but it really doesn’t if you know what you are doing.

The first thing I do before starting a new hobby or project is research.  I hit the web and try to learn as much as I can while taking notes.  During my research, I had lots of help from my brother and bought multiple products.  There were some products that were great and others that weren’t.

The product isn’t as important as you getting up and taking action to make your own wine.  I believe that people are spending way too much time reading when they should be starting their homemade wine journey.  This will motivate you to building up your red wine making business. how_to_make_wine_2

My personal favorite of having my own winery in my home is the fact that you can give your homemade wine away as gifts!  Wine is always a great gift and my friends and family are always very thankful when they receive my gift.  Plus, it serves as a great addition to parties.  Just bring over a few bottles and people will be complimenting your homemade wine all night!

I want you to stop asking how to make wine at home.  Just start doing it and you will have more wine than you know what to do with.  Sure, the first batch takes some time, but before you know it, you’ll be well on your way to your second batch and then third and fourth and so on.  That is what happened to me and look at me now :)

Cheers and happy wine making!

-Jeff

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