Anyone who does not have large vineyards, but loves wine, can make it from ordinary apples. The result is a very tasty drink, which in small quantities only benefits our body. Making apple wine at home is a fairly simple process that even beginners can handle. It is worth noting that many people like this drink, and your guests, having tasted it, will be satisfied.
We choose raw materials for apple wine
To make homemade wine, you can, in principle, use almost any kind of berries and fruits. However, grapes, pears and apples serve as an ideal raw material for this drink. This is due to the fact that some fruits contain very little sugar and a huge amount of acid. Wine made from the pure juice of such berries and fruits, as a result, is very acidic and slightly alcoholic. Grapes and apples have the perfect composition for making this drink. You can make wine from fruit juice. However, it does not need improvement and correction.
Tips for a novice winemaker
To date, more than one apple wine recipe is known. The drink can be prepared dessert, table, strong, liquor, simple and with the addition of yeast. If you are just taking the first steps and don’t know how to make homemade apple wine, then you should start with liquor, dessert or strong. Indeed, when preparing these varieties do not require sophisticated equipment, it is easier to tolerate inept and rough handling. It's no secret that the ability to make dry and light wines comes with experience. And the first time a good drink may not work. Making apple wine at home has certain difficulties.
What do you need to make wine from apples?
So how to make homemade apple wine? First of all, you need to prepare everything you need. To do this, you will need:
- Plasticine and a small plastic tube. All this can be replaced with a medical glove.
- Several hermetic containers. One is needed for fermentation, and the second is for defending the wine.
- Special equipment for making juice.
- Ripe apples.
- Sugar.
To make a simple apple wine, any kind of red, yellow, green fruit is suitable. You can apply both summer and winter. The main thing is that the fruits are fully ripe and, of course, juicy.
Prepare apples
Fruits harvested from the ground or ripped from trees do not need to be washed. Indeed, yeast lives on their surface, which in the future will bring considerable benefits. Especially if you are going to cook apple wine without yeast. If the fruits are too dirty, then they can be cleaned with a clothes brush or simply wiped with a dry cloth.
Many novice winemakers complain that there is a bitter aftertaste in the finished wine. To prevent this, apples should be removed from the core and seeds. If the fruit is slightly damaged, then it is worth cutting out all the rotten places.
Making juice
Making apple wine at home begins with fruit processing. Squeeze the juice out of them. For this, of course, it is better to use a special unit - a juicer. Only in this case, the raw material is clean and practically does not contain pulp. This greatly simplifies the further preparation of the drink.
If there is no such kitchen tool, then you can resort to the help of a mechanical grater. As a result, you should get mashed potatoes, which must be pressed. This can be done using regular gauze. Of course, the process is time-consuming, but in the end you should get at least liquid mashed potatoes. Only in this case you will have a chance to create your own apple wine, the preparation of which takes a lot of time.
Juice must settle
The recipe for apple wine is actually simple. Liquid mashed potatoes or juice must be placed for several days in a container with a sufficiently wide neck. To do this, you can use a barrel or a large pan. During this time, wild yeast enters the drink. As a result, the mixture should decompose into several fractions: ordinary juice and pulp, which is collected exactly at the top. For the yeast to fall directly into the raw material, for several days the mixture must be mixed up to 4 times a day with a wooden device or with a clean hand.
After three days on the surface of the juice, the pulp should collect in a dense layer. With a colander or stewpan, you need to remove it. As a result, clean juice should remain in the container, as well as a small layer of pulp up to 5 millimeters thick. This stage can be considered completed. The first signs of fermentation are characteristic hissing and vinegar-alcohol aroma. We can assume that the production of apple wine at home has begun.
Important ingredient: sugar
It is difficult to imagine homemade apple wine, the preparation of which takes a very long time, without adding sugar. After all, the fruits in any case remain acidic. Of course, without sugar you can make a drink like cider, but not wine. Do not forget that the drink comes in different varieties: dessert, sweet, semi-sweet, dry. The amount of sugar added to it depends on what kind of wine you want to cook. Of course, this also depends on how much fructose is in the fruits. If the apples are sweet, then less sugar is required.
If you want to get dry homemade apple wine, the preparation of which is somewhat more complicated, then you need to add only 200 grams of sugar per liter of juice. If dessert or sweet, then from 300 to 400. Do not exceed the specified standards. Otherwise, you end up with a sugary drink.
Main process: fermentation
Making apple wine at home is a complex process. At the beginning of fermentation, contact of the wort with air should be excluded. Otherwise, you will not get wine, but apple cider vinegar. To make a tasty drink, you should use sealed containers. In this case, cans and bottles are ideal.
Particular attention should be paid to the removal of carbon dioxide. It is secreted during fermentation. In this case, it is necessary to install a water shutter. To do this, make a small hole in the lid of the juice container. Insert a tube into it, the end of which should be installed in the bottle so that it does not become clogged with foam. And the second falls into a jar of water. Such a system will make it possible to freely bring out all the gases generated inside the wine container. Also, this will not allow air to enter the tank.
If you are preparing apple wine without yeast, then instead of such a complex system, you can put on the neck of a container of raw materials an ordinary medical glove, having previously made small holes in your fingers in it. If this option does not fit, then you should purchase a special cover-water lock.
Wine Making: The Basic Rules
The container should be filled with a must only 4/5 of the total volume. Free space is needed for foam and gases. After this, the container should be tightly closed with a lid and covered with plasticine.
During fermentation, a bottle of wine should be placed in a dark room. The temperature should be at least 18 °. The optimum temperature is from 20 to 22 °. At this stage, the container cannot be opened, and the wort should be shaken. The fermentation period is usually 30-45 days. Readiness can be determined by how often gas bubbles come out in a glass of water. If they have not been around for a long time, then your apple wine, the preparation of which took a little more than a month, is ready. The drink should settle a little more, literally a couple of days.
Wine ripening
Of course, young wine from apples can already be consumed. However, it is worth considering that the drink will have a slightly harsh aroma and taste. But this can be eliminated. The wine should just be infused.
To do this, take a dry, clean, sealed container. It is important that there is no yeast on the walls of the vessel. To do this, wash the container thoroughly and dry with a hairdryer. Using a straw, the wine should be carefully poured into another container. First you need to merge the upper light layers, gradually moving to the lower. The procedure should be carried out carefully so that sediment does not rise from the bottom. After the container is completely filled with wine, it must be closed (hermetically). It is better to store transfused wine in a cool place where the temperature does not rise above 16 ° and does not fall below 10 ° for a long time: from 60 to 120 days. As a result, your drink will fully ripen and acquire a unique taste and aroma.
After aging, the wine has a strength of 12 to 16 degrees. This drink has the aroma of ripe apples and a dark amber tint. You can enjoy it. Your wine is ready!