GRAPE WINE,

Just 4 u

More and more people are now growing their own outdoor wine grapes,
particularly in the south of England, and the "Amateur Winemaker" has received many
requests for "grape wine recipes." The word grape here is really superfluous, since true
wine can only be the product of the grape, as the etymology of the word shows (Greek
oine-vine, oinos-wine) and it is fitting that in any book on wine the grape should have
pride of place. Many are puzzled as to how to convert their grapes into wine, but in
essentials nothing could be simpler.
Firstly, make sure that your grapes are as ripe as possible (the birds will tell you
when they are nearly ready, if the vine is unprotected!), gather them, and set to work
quickly. All one has to do is to ferment the grape juice, but it is as well to note that, if
making small quantities, with a consequent high degree of wastage, as much as between
12 and 15 lb. of grapes will be required to produce a gallon of wine. About 4 lb. will
make one bottle. And, even in one of our sunniest summers, when the sugar content of
our grapes will perhaps be higher than usual, it is likely that one must expect to have to
add some sugar, if a reasonably strong wine is required. If you use a hydrometer, it is
simple to ascertain how much, but if you do not, no matter; the solution then is to aim at a
strong wine, say 18 per cent of alcohol by volume, and to continue adding the sugar in
small quantities of, say 4 oz. to the gallon at a time, until the ferment is carried as far as it
will go, and the sweetness of the wine is to your taste.
Many beginners seem to be puzzled by the difference between white wine and red,
and ask whether black grapes can be employed to produce the former. The answer is: Yes.
White wine can be made from grapes of either colour, the method being to express the
juice and ferment it alone. Red wine, on the other hand, is produced by leaving the skins
of the crushed black grapes in the must, so that the colour from them is extracted.
If the skins are left in only one or two days a vin rosè will be produced, if longer, a
wine of much deeper colour. This process can usually be continued for about 10 days, but
it is unwise to leave it much longer, and the liquid should then be drawn off.
A press, of course, is invaluable, and essential if making large quantities of white
wine, but most winemakers will be able to contrive to press enough grapes for one or two
gallons without one, by crushing with the hands or a piece of hardwood, or by using
boards and weights, or some similar device. For white wine, of course, the grapes must be
contained in stout calico or some such material to keep the skins separate.
Aim at a strength of 18 per cent alcohol by volume. If using a hydrometer, express
the juice from a few of the grapes and measure the S.G. With English grapes it is likely to
be fairly low, about 50 or 60, and to obtain the desired strength you will need to add 32
oz. of sugar. It may be higher, if so, consult this table, given by E. Chancrin in"LeVin":
(If you have no hydrometer, make a mental note of the fact you are likely to have
to add up to 2 lb. of sugar to each gallon, but do it by stages, adding 8 ozs. initially and
thereafter 4 oz. at a time.)
If you are making wine from grapes for the first time it is unlikely that you will
want to bother your head unduly about acidity, for if the grapes are really ripe any slight
over acidity can be masked by a little extra sugar once the wine is made. But for the
perfectionist it is as well to note that grapes—and certainly English grapes—are likely to
be slightly too acid, and probably contain about 1.30 per cent acid, whereas the desirable
acidity is about 1 per cent. The experienced winemaker will go to the trouble of
correcting this by diluting with syrup, but for our present purpose this is an unnecessary
complication.