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Keeping a very detailed log of each wine you make will allow you to track your wine’s daily progress from the vineyard to the bottle, and it is a great reference tool for the next time you want to make a similar wine or if you need to troubleshoot any problems.

The decisions you make in the process of red winemaking will dramatically impact the phenolics and tannins in the resulting wine. From maceration temperature to techniques like délestage, saignée, and thermovinification, you control how your wines will turn out.

When I was assigned the story detailing the decisions that come up during red wine fermentations, I began to block out the options and decision trees that occur before, during, and after

Whether it is choosing a yeast strain, halting fermentation with a little residual sugar, putting a wine through malolactic fermentation, or a myriad of other options, there is a lot to consider when fermenting white wines.

Winemakers often read tips online, get advice from a friend, or are passed down knowledge from ancestors who have been making wine for generations without ever questioning the validity of the information. It’s time for a fact check.

Having your wines judged at a competition can provide meaningful feedback, although it may not always make you feel great about your skills when the comments are critical. One man polled his winemaking club to get their feedback about entering wine competitions.

One of the mainstay grapes found in the heat-prone regions in the Rhône Valley of France is Cinsault. It often is utilized in blends to add softness to Rhône-style wines. Another great use is to turn it into rosé wine. Chik Brenneman gives you the scoop on this varietal.

A proud new owner of a sulfite test kit wants to know how often to test. The Wizard also answers questions on backyard vineyard planning, urethane coating on an oak barrel, extended maceration on a kit’s skin packet, and degassing wines.

If your home winemaking club runs a wine competition, you should check out this DIY stand stand that allows a high-volume wine opener to go mobile.

Adding oak to a wine can add an amazing depth of character or it can detract from the fruit. Learn some keys to managing the oak in your wine.

Live Chat with Frank Musto, which took place on August 12, 2020.

Live Chat with Alison Crowe, which took place on July 16, 2020.

Small-scale glycol cooling systems have become popular in recent years thanks to the homebrewing community. However, their benefits translate seamlessly for home winemakers. Learn more about when and how a glycol system can help in your home winery.

Albariño is Spain’s most famous white grape, best known from the country’s northwestern most department, Galicia, particularly the Rias Baixas (pronounced “Rias Bye-shas”) Denominación de Origen (D.O.). The jury is out on

Tempranillo is a Spanish grape best known as the main ingredient in that country’s respected Rioja wines. It’s also the basis of Vega Sicilia, arguably Spain’s most famous vino.  Tempranillo wines can

Explore the various equipment available to home winemakers for bulk aging wine prior to bottling — from plastic and glass, to stainless steel and oak. Each has its own benefits that can help elevate your wine.

The second and perhaps the most important reason is that if you’re doing your final rinsing with an acid blend that contains malic acid, you’re potentially releasing a food source for various bacteria into your equipment and into your cellar’s environment (like drains).

The good news is that most wines that you can buy off the supermarket shelf don’t contain a lot of yeast cells; if they did, the wines would look cloudy and might even re-ferment in the bottle.

I never use any chlorine-containing cleaning compounds in my winemaking and don’t recommend it to anyone. There are plenty of alternatives for cleaning, one of my favorites being sodium percarbonate.

Shelter-in-place orders have been a challenge for many folks. But one winemaking club has found a way to keep their meetings going while being socially responsible. Welcome to the age of the virtual club.

Elmer Swenson helped revolutionize the greater wine world with his cold-hardy grape breeding program. One such grape varietal that emerged from all his work was LaCrosse, with five species of grapes in its heritage. Learn about this grape made popular in colder climates — for good reasons.

Dumping your pomace and finding the grapes still juice-laden after pressing is frustrating. The Wizard has some pointers for getting the most from your grapes as well as baking bread with wine yeast and the concerns of light strike on your wines.

Live Chat with Maureen Macdonald, which took place on June 17, 2020.

My situation is that the total acidity (TA) rises during the aging process.What could be causing this?

Live Chat with Pat Henderson, which took place on May 13, 2020.