Is wine made with juice or concentrate as "real" as wine made with grapes?

Yes! During September and October, when grapes are available, fresh-pressed juice is also available. These high quality varietal grape juices make excellent wine with a plus being that they are already balanced for acid and sugar and a serious amount of work has been removed by not having to crush, destem and press the grapes. Which also means it's not necessary to have such large equipment such as a grape crusher and grape press. Concentrates are available 365 days per year and come in many varietal styles. The most common and easy to use types of concentrates come as 28 day or 4 week wine kits. Most of these wine kits produce 6 gallons each, are very easy to use and produce an excellent wine. Many of our new winemaking customers are shocked and pleasantly surprised to find out what a good wine these kits can produce.

Can I make as good a wine as what I can purchase?

Yes you can! With a little reading or a few hours of instruction you can make a very pleasant wine. Always remember that it's just as easy to make good wine as bad wine. All that is necessary to become a winemaker is a little patience and a basic understanding of the process.

How much patience is necessary?

When using concentrates, it takes as little as I to 2 months to produce an excellent wine. When using fresh grapes or juice it will take up to I year to achieve your goal, and it doesn't take a rocket scientist or biochemist. Regular every day people have been making wine for thousands of years. Admittedly, some good and some bad, but with our newfound understanding of wine yeast cultures, it is as easy as putting a glass to your lips.

How much wine can I make and do I have to have a license?

Licenses are not required in the United States for home winemaking as long as you do not produce more than 200 gallons per year per household and you DO NOT SELL the product.

Where can I buy the equipment and ingredients necessary to make this delicious wine?

Arbor Supplies has everything the home winemaker needs. We stock a terrific beginner I s 4 Week Winemakinq kit which includes everything you need to make your first 6 gallon batch, including the ingredients (which gives you a choice of approximately 30 varieties of red, white or rosè wine. We also stock a wine equipment kit for those of you who wish to use your own grapes, fruit, etc. to make a batch of wine. Please check out our winemaking page and e-mail us if you have any questions.

Beermaking FAQs

How hard is it to make beer?

If you can boil one gallon of water, you can make great tasting beer. We have provided a simple to follow step by step instruction sheet that will show you how easy it is.

How do I know if my yeast died?

Most yeast strains are very viable and usually will ferment as long as the temperature of the wort/beer or wine/must is at least 70 to 75 degrees.

What is Specific or Starting gravity?

This is the measurement of the beer or wine before fermentation starts and tells you the potential alcohol you will end up with.

How do I know if my fermentation stopped to soon?

Unless you take a hydrometer reading at the beginning of the fermentation which is called your Starting/Specific Gravity you will not know if your beer or wine is fermenting. As long as the numbers on the hydrometer are dropping fermentation is taking place even if the airlock is not bubbling actively.

What is priming sugar?

This is the sugar that is added to the wort right before bottling which will carbonate the beer in the bottle. Priming sugar can be corn sugar or dry malt extract.

Five gallons of beer seems like a lot of beer. How many bottles is it?

Five gallons makes approximately 2 cases (48 bottles) of beer. Believe me when your friends and family taste your homebrew they will drink it up before you do.