Basic 10 things you need to make wine
Interested in making wine? Me too! There just aren't enough home vintner's anymore. It's nice to share ideas and techniques with each other but experience makes all the difference. Here are the "Basic 10" things you will need to get started. All of these items are cheap and with basic care, will give you a lifetime of use and even be around to hand down to the next generation wine-maker. You may even already have most items.
Some helpful knowledge in winemaking:
For red wines, ports, and sherry wines, that we classify as "oxidative," either plastic or glass secondary fermentors are acceptable. For whites and roses, which are classified as "reductive," use glass fermentors only. Food-grade plastic is pourous, like wood and allows the wine to breath small amounts of oxygen, which helps red wine to mature. But it doesn't mean you should leave your red wine in plastic fermentors too long. After 3 months of fermenting, start to smell and taste your wine. It will normally take 6-9 months to age but if your carboy is thin or if you store it in a warm place over 70° F, the process is faster---NOT BETTER... faster. Take that as you may.
The name "carboy" derives from the Persian word "qarabah," meaning "a large glass container to hold corrosive liquid." To speed the emptying of carboys when rinsing/emptying, turn them upside down and swirl the contents in a rotary motion. The liquid will empty out in a smooth stream instead of gulping which takes longer.
About wooden wine barrels:
Acquaint yourself thoroughly with the procedures of using wooden barrels. They are usually for making larger quantities of wine. Maintaining barrels is a job and can easliy lead to below-average wine if not done properly.