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Writer: WineMaker Staff

106 result(s).

I’ve noticed crystals forming inside my Zinfandel bottles. Do you have an explanation?

Dear Wine Wizard, I have been making red Zinfandel wine at home with juice concentrate. I‘ve noticed crystals forming inside and they stick to the bottle. When you shake the bottle they


Can Lambrusco wine be refrigerated for several months and then safely kept on a wine rack?

Dear Wine Wizard, Can Lambrusco wine be refrigerated for several months and then safely kept on a wine rack? What is the expiration time frame for this wine? Jeanne Considine Boulder, Colorado


Is it possible for the potassium metabisulfite powder I use for sanitizing to lose its strength over time?

You’re right to suspect that both the potassium metabisulfite powder and solution can lose their power over time. The solution, which you make by mixing the powder with water, is particularly unstable.


2003 WineMaker International Amateur Wine Competition Winners!

1,499 entries 287 wine flights 221 total judging hours 41 American states 8 Canadian provinces 4 countries Walking into a large ballroom packed with 1,499 wine bottles organized into 287 wine flights


Can I use a fish aquarium as a fermenter?

Dear Wine Wizard, Could I make wine in an aquarium or would the glue cause a problem? Dean Mehrkens Thief River Falls, Minnesota Wine Wizard replies: “This is the dawning of the


Can I add yeast to Mountain Dew or Sprite to make it into a “wine”?

Dear Wine Wizard, Can I add yeast to Mountain Dew or Sprite to make it into a “wine”? Dean Mehrkens Thief River Falls, Minnesota Wine Wizard replies: Whoa. Sprite or Mountain Dew?


What is your opinion of enzymes added to wine to improve color, mouthfeel, and flavor?

Lallzyme EX is a blend of enzymes that helps break down the plant cells in grapes. This mix of pectinase, cellulase and hemicellulase is introduced at the crusher or right at the


Picking the Proper Wine Yeast: Tips from the Pros

Stephen Smith attended wine appreciation classes at Denver University in 1982–84, winemaking seminars at the New Mexico Wine and Vine Society in Albuquerque from 1984 to the present, and extension courses at


Making Blueberry Wine: Tips from the Pros

Two pros offer advice to make a great blueberry wine at home.


2002 WineMaker International Amateur Wine Competition Winners!

Winners from the 2002 WineMaker International Amateur Wine Competition


The 2002 WineMaker Label Contest Winners!

View the winning labels of the 2002 WineMaker Label Contest.


How can I keep my fermenters cool during hot weather?

Dear Wine Wizard, I desperately need to know how to cool my primary. I use two 50-gallon barrels to ferment my wine and am tired of using frozen one-gallon plastic jugs. There


What can I do to improve the aroma of my mead?

Dear Wine Wizard, I have been making mead for a few years. I love the clover and honey accents in it. Most people who have tried it like the taste, but they


My finished wine has the aroma and taste of burnt rubber. What did I do wrong?

Dear Wine Wizard, Here’s one problem you may have been asked about before. My finished wine has an aroma and taste of rubber and burnt toast, a bit like burnt rubber. Since


Must Haves

Easy Electric Bottle Filler If you’ve ever used the Buon Vino automatic bottle filler, you know how easy it is to bottle a batch of wine. Buon Vino has made the job


2001 Label Contest Winners

Gold Medal Winners Joan Huff Louisville, Kentucky Joan won honorable mention in last year’s contest with a similarly colorful label. She and her husband ordered some Muscat grapes from California and things


Can I have some advice on malo-lactic fermentation and its impact on acidity?

Dear Wine Wizard, I raised the TA of the must from 0.5 to 0.6 at the beginning of fermentation for my red wine. Should I still add malolatic bacteria to start MLF


I want to drip a wax coating on the top of my bottles to add that special touch. Can you advise me on how to do this?

Dear Wine Wizard, I’m bottling some mead, and wanted to add that extra special touch to the finished product. I’ve seen some bottles with a wax coating on the top, the kind


Are the lumbrusca riparia grapes I’m growing the same kind of grapes used to make lambrusco wine?

Dear Wine Wizard, I’m new to wine making but I have made beer and mead for three years. What types of grapes and yeast are used to make lambrusco wine? Also the


I added oak beans to several different batches of wine at the same time. Only my Chardonnay turned milky and hazy while the other wines were clear. Do you have any idea what happened?

Dear Wine Wizard, After I stabilized my wine, I added French medium toast oak beans to the Chardonnay 3/4 cup (new beans), Sauvignon Blanc 1/3 cup (new beans), Ruisseau Blanc 3/4 cup


Spring Cleaning for Winemakers: Tips from the Pros

Spring is often seen as a time for cleaning, and there’s plenty for the home winemaker to do after a long winter. This includes scrubbing away the grime, dust and cobwebs that


Can I use my copper immersion wort chiller from brewing with my mead or other wines?

Dear Wine Wizard, I made homebrewed beer for a long time, but during the last couple of years I have gravitated more towards making wine and mead. I know that it’s safe


2000 WineMaker Label Contest Winners

After crawling our way out of the large piles of boxes, envelopes and packages that have been collecting on the floor of the editorial department for the past two months, we managed


Is it better to separate free-run wine from the pressed wine during fermentation and should they be blended before bottling if you are making Zinfandel?

Dear Wine Wizard, Our Zinfandel wine is now in secondary fermenters, with free-run wine separate from the pressed. Do you have advice on allowing the free and pressed wines to go their


I did not rehydrate my yeast before I pitched it. How do I do this and what happens if I don’t?

Dear Wine Wizard, I did not rehydrate my yeast before I pitched it. How do I do this and what happens if I don’t? John Eastwood Cleveland Wine Wizard replies: Rehydrating yeast


106 result(s) found.