A Sneak Peak Into the Addis Home Winery

Last year, I started a new hobby. I produced two batches of wine in my little home winery. Yes, I made mistakes, but I learned from each one. And despite a few bumps along the way, I was very pleased with my results.

Perhaps what I learned most was that it was something I enjoyed doing. And so a few weeks ago I made the decision to go at it again in 2014. And it all started this weekend!

Over the next few months, I will be providing updates on this blog. I hope you enjoy taking the journey with me!

THIS YEAR'S CHOICE

The vessel that contained the goodness.

My favorite type of wine is a Pinot Grigio. It's a semi-dry white wine. It is light and crsip and often has hints of fruit such as apple or pear. Some call it the perfect summer wine. I just call it delicious.

So why didn't I make it last year? Because last year I made small batches (2.5 gallons each). I couldn't find a Pinot Grigio wine kit that was less than 6 gallons. Now that I've had a little experience, I decided to make a full 6-gallon batch in 2014.

These five packets came with the wine.

 

After Step One

THE PROCESS
Step one was dumping the Pinot Grigio into my fermentation bucket (which was one of the gadgets I purchased last year.)

After Step Two

Step Two was adding water to it until it reached the six gallon mark. Then I stirred it.

Neither step was that exciting, but my heart was pounding the whole time. I kept thinking, "What if I spill this all over the kitchen floor?"

My initial hydrometer reading.

I wish I would have gotten a better picture here, because this may be the coolest part... testing the gravity of my mixture. I used a hydrometer for this, and it's something I will use a couple more times in my process. The readings will let me know how far along the wine has come. Using these readings, I will also be to determine the ABV (alcohol by volume).

Who said chemistry wasn't any fun???

My initial reading was 1.098, which is right in line with where it should be.

Adding some yeast.

I added the yeast soon afterwards. Believe it or not, this small packet of yeast is all it takes to turn the "grape juice" into wine.

Unfortunately, this act is somewhat anti-climatic. Nothing magical happens when you add it (at least not immediately). It just floats on top. The real fun happens behind closed doors...

After the yeast was added.

...and now we wait!

The only thing left to do was put a lid on my bucket, and find a place for it to do it's thing... and that's exactly what our guest room is for!  The beach towels you see wrapped around it are to minimize the amount of light it gets.

...So this is where my batch of wine will sit for the next 7-10 days. I will take another reading with the hydrometer to see how much it has fermented. If it meets the requirements, then a transition will be in order.

Stay tuned!