Article

Bottling, Start to Finish

The last step in making wine is putting it in the bottle. Learn the steps to do it safely and efficiently.

Article

Making Riesling: Tips from the Pros

Winemaker Kent Rosenblum of Rosenblum Cellars in Alameda, California goes back to his early roots by offering his thoughts on making Rieslin

Article

Practical Wine Terms

A quick dictionary of the most common winemaking terms that a novice will need to know when reading stories about making wine or growing gra

Article

Preventing Off-Flavors

Sometimes things go wrong, and the result is off-flavors. But most wine defects are easily prevented with good sanitation and a few simple w

Wine-wizard

Can you give me some guidelines on whether or not to add sulfite to my wine?

Technique

Delestage Demystified

Delestage is a multi-step “rack-and-return” technique intended for red wines when seeking brighter fruit character, softer tannins, a ro

Article

Ferment What You Eat

Learn the basics of fermenting food, with steps and recipes to make your own fermented pickles, sauerkraut, and hot sauces.

Article

Microbial Stability

Chemical and microbial stability measures must be taken after fermentation but prior to bottle aging to protect the wine from contamination

Article

Whose Fault Was It?

Phil Plummer was one of the experienced judges at the 2022 WineMaker International Amateur Wine Competition. After three days of judging he

Article

Classic Catawba: America’s first true wine grape

Some people have called Zinfandel “America’s grape,” others say it should be Concord. Chik Brenneman is here to make the case for the

Article

Cayuga White: Get hooked on its feeling

A hybrid grape that came out of Cornell University’s breeding program in the 1970s, Cayuga White has found great success while being made

Article

Pét Projects

Pétillant-naturel sparkling wines — which are bottled prior to the conclusion of fermentation — are having a moment. Without any requir

Article

Protecting Your Wine, Cap Temperature, Copper Sulfate Additions, and Carbonation Help

Oxidation is one of the most common faults among homemade wines. The Wiz has some tips for minimizing exposure during racking along with adv

Article

Lifespan of a Wine Barrel

Wine barrels are constantly changing. Each time one is filled it will lose some characteristics and, eventually after enough uses, it will g

Technique

The Basics Of Racking Wine

Review some basic concepts of transferring your wine and ways you can improve your process to better your wine.

Article

Phenolics in Red Wines

The decisions you make in the process of red winemaking will dramatically impact the phenolics and tannins in the resulting wine. From macer

Article

Vineyard Planning, Varnish on Mini Barrels, Macerating Skin Packs, and Degassing Wine

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, ur

Wine-wizard

Macerating Skin Packs

Article

Pressing Issues, Making Bread with Wine Yeast and Light Strike

Dumping your pomace and finding the grapes still juice-laden after pressing is frustrating. The Wizard has some pointers for getting the mos

Technique

Lees and You: Dead yeast can be your friend

Aging on fine lees has traditionally been reserved for Muscadets, white Burgundy wines, and classic champenoise-style wines, but that doesn�

Article

Keys To Great Winemaking

Article

Good Oxygen

Article

Zinfandel: ‘America’s’ grape

We all are familiar with White Zinfandel, the rosé style that enjoyed immense popularity in recent years and led to the emergence of a ros�

Article

Evaporation Clarification, “Big” Reds, and Mold Malady

Remember, every time you open your barrel, you introduce air and potentially some undesirable spoilage organisms.

Wine-wizard

Transporting Wine