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Raspberry Wine: Tips from the Pros

Summertime is the season of fruits and berries. For winemakers on the professional and amateur levels, it is also the season for fruit and berry wines. There are as many country wines


Norton Grapes: An American Original

Learn about Norton grapes, an American original, plus how to make Norton wine.


Field Grafting Grape Vines

If you want to grow a new varietal, you have the option of grafting cuttings onto your existing rootstock, saving you the time of establishing a new root system. Also, if your


How Yeast is Made

Home winemaking continues to gain in popularity. The quality of wines kits has greatly improved over the past several years and, as a consequence, the first experience of many folks curious about


What the Pros Think When They Choose Yeast

According to academics and professionals, if you want to pick the right yeast for your grape juice, knowing what questions to ask is essential. “I view it more as not who do


How Kit Manufacturers Choose Yeast

Wine yeast — or Saccharomyces, which is Latin for ‘sugar-fungus’ — converts sugar into alcohol. While alcoholic fermentation is the most important aspect of winemaking, yeast does more than just bubble out


10 Can’t-Miss Country Wine Recipes

If you have not tried making country wines — i.e. non-grape wines — this article’s sole purpose is to entice you to try. To do this, I’ve collected 10 sure-fire recipes just


The Perils of Volatile Acidity

It’s as much a process as it is a condition. It’s also a perfectly natural part of the fermenting process. It can happen at any time and depending on when and how


One Vine at a Time: Dry Finish

The first year Tam Cloer experimented with planting grapevines on his 18-acre property in Apex, North Carolina — just southwest of Raleigh, the state’s capital — a late spring frost killed every


Entering Wine Competitions

You’re not obligated to win. You’re obligated to keep trying to do the best you can every day.” –Marian Wright Edelman I’ve always liked Marian’s sentiment. There’s nothing that says you have


Sanitation Sanity: How often should wine equipment be sanitized?

It is absolutely critical to have good winery sanitation as dirty equipment does nothing but invite bad-guy bacteria and unwanted yeast beasties to munch on our wine. However — there is a


What is the best way to store plastic fermentation tubs and keep them clean?

You’re on the right track — it’s not a good idea to mix chlorine bleach with winemaking because free chlorine molecules can, if the conditions are right, contribute to appreciable levels of


How long should I age wines made from fruit other than grapes?

The most general guidelines the Wine Wiz can give you for aging wines from fruits, vegetables and herbs are these: Always cellar any wine at least six months before opening the first


Kegging Wine

Sparkling wine usually comes packaged in either standard-sized wine bottles (750 mL), half-bottle-sized splits or Magnums, which hold the equivalent of two standard wine bottles. However, less common, larger bottle sizes include


Winning Winemaking Gold Medal Tips

Out of the 2,247 wines entered in the 2005 WineMaker International Amateur Wine Competition, six still wines topped the charts in the best of show categories of red, white, dessert, fruit, kit


True Champagne: Tips from the Pros

Two professional Champagne-makers share their secrets for home winemakers.


2005 WineMaker Label Contest Winners!

View the winning labels of the 2005 WineMaker label contest.


When using oak cubes in a recipe from concentrate, at what stage in the process should they be added?

Ah, the timeless pairing of American oak and Zinfandel. It’s a taste combination that’s got more than 100 years of history in U.S. winemaking and if the number of Zin labels that


How do you prepare ahead for topping up your barrels with wine? Do you set aside wine in a carboy to use later in the barrels?

Dear Wine Wizard, I am a novice home winemaker and have been contemplating making the move from carboy and bottle-aging to barrel-aging some of my reds. It is my understanding that a


Bulk vs. Bottle Aging

For those of our fellow grape nuts who don’t know, bulk aging refers to aging wines in vessels other than the final bottle whereas bottle aging refers to wines aged in their


Building Diamond Bin Wine Racks

Diamond bins, so called because of their orientation, are a simple storage option. I recommend building a diamond bin frame and making some horizontal shelves for holding wine in case boxes. (By


Wild Yeast: The Pros and Cons of Spontaneous Fermentation

Making wine with wild yeast has been a source of debate for many because of its unpredictable nature. Should you make your wine from wild yeast or cultured yeast? This article will provide some insight to help you make an informed decision.


I noticed an oily film on top of my Norton before I racked it. What should I be worried about and how do I fix it?

Norton is a fun variety of red wine to make and certainly is a big favorite in the Midwest. I’ve tried some good Nortons over the years and I can share your


I think I might have ruined 350 bottles of my Merlot when I stored it in a wine locker and the odor and taste changed. What do you think happened?

It’s hard to say “what went wrong” in this situation as the life of every wine is a fog of carefully guarded secrets that even my scrying glass can’t penetrate. However, the


Home Winemaking Pro: Dry Finish

The Cat’s Meow Vineyard has been the moniker for my homemade winemaking operation in Warsaw, Kentucky for the past four years. My eight cats that “patrol” the grounds were the inspiration for


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