HOMEBREW: Bottling Day for the First Kit Wine
Our first batch of homemade kit wine is in the bottles! It’s an inexpensive Washington State basic kit malbec (with a few off-label tweaks)… It definitely needs some time in the bottle to age, but so far, so good.
It was my first time bottling wine and while the process has a lot in common with bottling home brewed beer, there are a few differences. I go over those below, along with a list of supplies that are either essential or will make this project a lot easier!
I still have to clean up and label these bottles and figure out where I am going to cellar them (so many projects in the basement, so little of me- I need like 3 more of myself to get everything done *and* have time to enjoy these when they’re ready… because of course the shelving units that will eventually hold these bottles have lumber in them for other projects that I have to finish first).
Also please, Santa, if you read this, bring me an Italian floor corker. I’m sorry, corks, my “wingman” and I did our best. Maybe more practice? Maybe try soaking them? Maybe give up on getting #9’s in with the hand corker? Although when I gave up and switched to #8’s it didn’t go much better. It remains a mystery, and many stubborn ones were met with a few solid taps from Mjölnir (my trusty rubber mallet) to persuade them into place. Such is life.
Anyway, don’t let perfection get in the way of trying and learning (easier said than done, but at least the mistakes should be drinkable, which is more than I can say for plenty of other mistakes I have made in the past?).
Not pictured, another magnum from the bottom of this batch, but in a screwtop, for topping up the new batch I am starting today. We can’t know what challenges the future will hold, but at least there will be wine?
Next up to go in the bottle- the hawthorn country wine is clear and ready to put up- thankfully, as I’m running out of carboys, and almost everything on that second shelf wants racking. But not today- it’s gorgeous outside!
Wine Bottling Supplies Needed
Essentials:
- Clean and sanitized wine bottles (rinse with sulfite solution and let drain)
- Corks (appropriate size for your corker and bottles, and planned aging time)
- Racking cane
- Bottle filler or bottling bucket and bottling wand
- Corker (hand, bench, or floor)
- Clarified, stabilized finished wine (of course)
Nice to have:
- Bottle drying rack(s)
- Fancy labels (you *can* use painters tape or bottle tags, but you can also make or buy pretty ones that up your presentation game)
- An extra clean bucket or drip pan
- Dropcloth if you are working somewhere that isn’t a utility room that can get messy
- Mjölnir (or rather, a rubber mallet, and wooden dowel, if you are using a hand corker, to careful “persuade” the stubborn corks to seat fully).
- Patience (see above) or a floor corker
- A second pair of hands
- Tasting glasses
- Snacks! Are you really making wine if you don’t eat some sopressatta and olives while you work? (Ok now wash your hands again)