Making Wine from Frozen Grapes! Make Incredible Red Wine Anywhere, Anytime!

[@beescheeseandwineplease889]

This video is why I love this guy, he really tells you and shows you how to actually make wine down to the important details!

[@ChristopherJ24]

Keep up the good videos. You have the best wine making videos. You explained making great wine from years of experience. Thank you

[@TheHomeWinemakingChannel]

Thanks for the awesome feedback. Glad the videos could be helpful!

[@jadpapi]

pretty much the best wine making tutorial on KZbin. I've seen this dozens of times.

[@montereymamacita]

This was a phenomenal video - really appreciate you walking through your decision making process. Linking everything together. Cheers!

[@TheHomeWinemakingChannel]

Thank you! I'm glad the video could be helpful for you. It was a real chore to put this one together since I had so many different camera shots and steps to show. Rather than split it into multiple parts, I thought it would be better to just go through the entire process up to aging so that people don't need to search around for a second video if they try to replicate on their own.

[@montereymamacita]

@@TheHomeWinemakingChannel That's so true. I did a blog post for ginger wine - and it's like, okay, we'll come back to this one in 9 months.... Cheers! I appreciate it!

[@michaelbereny6783]

Thank you Awesome tutorial. This January I made the leap to frozen grapes form kits. This video helps explain the process to me allot more that the directions give with the grapes

[@dougmacdonald3540]

This guys knowledge blows my mind

[@jbro800]

This guy is crazy with the additives.

[@erenxbjk]

This is nice and very detailed explanation of making great vine. Thanks.

[@AllMyHobbies]

Do you have any bottles left a tasting follow up video would be cool

[@matheussoares2490]

Thank you very much for your video, it's really great, I never thought that would be possible make wine of frozen grapes, I just heard about ice wine. Matt from brazil

[@distlledbrewedreviewed]

Very interesting my friend.

[@joehommes7364]

Do you add sulfites before cold soak?

[@lorijewels9391]

hi great video.. I bought some rjs wine kits and the ph is running low? like 3.1, I let sit on the grape skins for extra time - I bought some k bicarbonate and added .5t to each 5g batch, but for these reds you would suggest I get it to 3.5 post fermentation (now - they are still low) thanks similar ? regarding the tanin - best to add some tanin even post fermentation? - thanks.

[@TheHomeWinemakingChannel]

I have seen some weird stuff from RJS wine kits. The pH seems to run very low but they the TA is also low so they do not taste particularly acidic. I think they are engineered this way so that they are very unlikely to oxidize from careless Winemaking. I wouldn't get too carried away with bring the pH up any more on it or it will likely taste a little thin/flabby.

[@lorijewels9391]

@@TheHomeWinemakingChannel Oh great, Of course I made a bunch of adjustments last night while racking.. (and straining so I watched a ton of KZbin wine making videos..) I used a 3 to 4 teaspoons per batch!!! to adjust ph to 3.1 to 3.4s some were as low as 2.9 and they were expired and I want to complete malolactic fermentation sooo obviously worried re ph.. Hope I didnt make these 4 kits flabby!! One merlot msrp is 199 the en premier kit and i added 3t to that one of k bicarbonate!! Yikes. What should i do now if anything??

[@Hatttt198]

Great video! Is there any material difference using a stainless steele racking cane compared to clear plastic?

[@TheHomeWinemakingChannel]

Thank you! There is really no effect on the wine if you use the plastic cane. Stainless will flow a little faster at the same size OD since the wall thickness is a lot thinner. And stainless is much less likely to break on you as you are jamming hoses on and off of it.

[@jasmirdzafic1633]

very nice video, any tips with over sugar wine, happend to me, after secondary fermentation i had very low % of alcohol 5% ,add sugar to elevated but did bad job, its 1.20 on hidrometer, its any way i can save wine on this point of time, i tried kick fermentation again, bubeling,but, not, moving any numbers on hidrometar. thank you

[@patricklaureys1249]

Wow, I had no idea that making wine is actually a chemistry class. I always thought it was just about fermenting the grapes. 😀

[@ryanrich9186]

It is just about fermenting the grapes... the chemistry is simply manipulating the attributes.

[@rguard52]

I noticed you start ML after racking. It also seemed like your time frame of the first rack was early. I have been adding ML before the first rack and then rack after it finishes. Since I don’t have temp control that’s usually at the 2 week mark. Does adding ML after the first rack make a big difference vs. the way I have been doing it?

[@BrittRichie-Zavaleta-wq3vp]

This video is great. Thank you. I have a Pinot Noir from must. It is my first wine that is not from juice only and I am really new. I am starting malolactic fermentation. So I have two questions. The additive packet down not come with malolactic bacteria (a packet). She I buy one? How long do I leave it in the fermentor before I bottle? I was hoping to bottle in a couple of months but it seems like they want me to wait longer in the packet. Thank you. Also you have tons of nerdy and wonderful PH and technical info here. Do you have a book or something that can help me understand this process better?

[@jercastro650]

Hey Rick. Loving all your content and excellent tips, especially for guys like me just getting started. Noticed in your notes that on day 6 of fermentation (2/26) you used both CaCO3 and KCO3 to knock down your acid. What was is the rational for that choice? Thanks and keep it coming!

[@TheHomeWinemakingChannel]

Hi Jerry. Calcium Carbonate will reduce the acid pretty rapidly but leave a small bit of residual calcium. Potassium bicarbonate is a little slower but leaves residual potassium. Generally potassium bicarb is the first choice but eventually the potassium could create a slight salty taste if it were too much. The amounts I added were super small so it really doesn't matter but my rational is that a tiny bit of calcium and a tiny bit of potassium is probably less likely to ever be detectable than a larger amount of one or the other.

[@jercastro650]

@@TheHomeWinemakingChannel Ahh, cool. Appreciate the rapid response and detail. Super helpful since my chem background is zero :) Thanks Rick!

[@crazyhunternick5110]

At what point do you add potassium sorbate to the wine ??? Thanks 😊

[@chawletsaowse7742]

great vid! do you happen to have the exact measurements of the additives youre putting into the buckets?

[@gi4811]

Did you ever write up the step by step steps on your website? I was trying to find it to refer to and study but can't locate it.

[@johnk663]

What is the recommended process for getting the juice out if you don’t have a grape press?

[@thekidsta1]

Hello, why didnt you use an air lock from the beginning? Leaving the lid loose wont cause oxidation? I read so many different ways its difficult to know whats best

[@crcarlsonUT]

I have really enjoyed watching this video as I prepare for my first frozen must red wine. How did this one turn out? Have you used Opti-Red by chance? If so, how do you like it?

[@SunilVarpe-xj7jh]

After making a wine where would u kept it for longer periods??

[@stevetate8476]

Any suggestions for a cost effective comprehensive wine making kit?

[@stanleygrover1685]

Going to add my own grapes to my ginger mead this year if Wyoming doesn't freeze my grapes to soon. But if it does I will pick them an start sooner.

[@caburtnett1980]

Are bugs normal? I got my bucket today (10/7/22) and u got bugs floating in it... Stems, seeds, sure I get it, but bugs?🤷‍♂️ Should I ferment them too?

[@joehommes7364]

Do you ever add the oak during primary fermentation to help preserve color and improve stability?

[@stanleygrover2162]

You talked me into frozen grape !

[@ajtaylor3861]

I couldn’t see in the video, did you drain the water out of the bucket once it fully thawed? Did you add additional water to the bucket after that or no? We missed that part.

[@TheHomeWinemakingChannel]

It is frozen crushed and destemmed grapes. If you pick fresh grapes for red wine the first step is to crush and de-stem them. The liquid in the bucket is grape juice from the crushed berries, and not water so you are basically getting a ready to go, red wine "must". No need to drain anything out.

[@SunilVarpe-xj7jh]

How much grams yeast should we add for 100 kg wine grapes

[@nathanstowe1768]

Just bought my first frozen bucket. Looking forward to learning. Not enough of this content online…

[@vincentlabruzzo5368]

If I chose to go this route and I didnt have the means to test s02. What are your recommendations?

[@joehommes7364]

Do wine makers mix the different grapes together early on during fermentation or do they blend them together later?

[@felix.b4592]

How do you keep your punchdown tool sanitized during primary fermantation? Do you keep a bucket with sanitizer during this period or do you make one fresh for each time you punchdown?

[@TheHomeWinemakingChannel]

I leave it in a bucket of Star San that is filled about a foot high. With the larger punch down tool, I spray it off with water when I am done using it, and use a spray bottle of Star San on it right before using.

[@jimdent351]

Do you remember how much oak you used in this wine overall? In the video you used a little more than an ounce. Did you add more later? I'm looking to make a Sangiovese again this year but this time I'd like to try oaking it. It's my understanding that Sangiovese likes less oak than a Merlot or Cab. Sauv. does. Thanks.

[@RyanB.222]

Did you degas before transferring onto the oak? I’ve tried bulk aging with natural degas and it took forever to clear to what you have there after two days.

[@TheHomeWinemakingChannel]

Did not degas before bulk aging. Sometimes if a wine stalls out before finishing fermentation it can take very long to clear up. The gross lees should fall out pretty quick but to fully clear up, no haze whatsoever, usually takes at the earliest about 1.5 months to about 6 months.

[@RyanB.222]

@@TheHomeWinemakingChannel Another question. What size is your press? I am heading down to CFP to pick one up. I figured their size 30 would be plenty big enough for 5-10 gallon batches.

[@stanleygrover1685]

I use a 14gallon S.S, and a recirculation pump. in a cool basement . on cool hot ferments over 85,F.

[@naveen3590]

Do u add an airlock after pressing to kill the active yeast ? Or is there some other reason ?

[@TheHomeWinemakingChannel]

You add the airlock after pressing to keep the oxygen out. The yeast will still survive if it is still going but it does like a little air to keep it happy. I usually press once the wine goes dry. After the fermentation is completed you really need to start limiting the oxygen exposure or the wine will start oxidizing which can smell like Sherry, nail polish remover, or vinegar

[@naveen3590]

The Home Winemaking Channel thanks for the response, jus a another basic doubt, when does the fermentation stops ? I do understand once you press and throw the must the fermentation process gets over, but the yeast is still in the wine, won’t the remaining yeast keeps converting the sugar into alcohols ? Do you add something for the remaining yeast to stop fermentation after pressing ??

[@senseisalkarate]

Hi just got done with primary fermentation. I want to start malolactic fermentation bu my ph is at 2.9. Any suggesrions

[@TheHomeWinemakingChannel]

I would make sure your pH meter is calibrated against some 4.0 and 7.0 solution. I recently had a guy who's meter was reading off by about 0.5. 2.9 sounds unusually low to the point where I would question the meter unless it was a white wine or fruit wine. If the reading is right, you can nudge it up a little bit with some potassium bicarbonate to help get MLF going but it will still be a challenge. You will need to keep the wine relatively warm to get things going.

[@chijingleow7051]

I have a question. Do you prefer synthetic cork or normal cork? Why and why not? Could you put a link for where I can get it?

[@TheHomeWinemakingChannel]

I use acquamark corks. They are natural, single piece corks with all the little pores filled with cork dust. Natural cork compresses more easily and fits a larger variety of bottles without issue. If you got a bad batch of natural cork though it can can contain TCA, the cause of "cork taint". I have never had this happen but with lower quality corks it can certainly happen. With synthetic corks this is not an issue.

[@pilsplease7561]

@@TheHomeWinemakingChannel Cork taint is relatively rare maybe 3 bottles out of 50 would have it. Also synthetic corks seal worse and can leak more air into the bottle and can oxidize a wine faster.

[@jeffchong3690]

I'm about to start my very first batch and am pretty nervous haha. I read online that I should put in 1 campden tablet for every 1 gallon of wine before primary fermentation, after first racking, and before bottling. Is that something I should follow or is that way too much?

[@jeffchong3690]

I figure it'd be a total of about 11 or 12 tablets all together based on me getting 5 gallons of grape must. Your input would be super appreciated

[@coreybassett5341]

Rick how did it turn out? I’m picking up a Oregon Malbec and Sonoma Merlot in a few weeks from Peter that I’ll blend in with the Sonoma Cab I got from him fresh that is a tad higher in ph and alcohol than I’d like but is already starting to taste really good.

[@TheHomeWinemakingChannel]

It turned out great!

[@jonathanl88]

What website do you order your grapes ???

[@TheHomeWinemakingChannel]

I got these ones from brehmvineyards.com. Right now they are selling everything from 2016 at a big discount.

[@jonathanl88]

@@TheHomeWinemakingChannel thanks... what other websites you recommend to order fresh grapes...??

[@davidbattrick3690]

So I ordered a 5 gallon bucket of Merlot and by accident because of delivery problems got two buckets, they are both frozen. Following a Cold-Soak. My question is if you where to do two different styles what would you suggest, from yeast, too favor condiments. If you was to play with two different styles what would you do? Or would you stick with just one? And just do it right? Did I just answer my question?...:)

[@TheHomeWinemakingChannel]

I'd ferment one cold (68F) which will make a very fruit forward wine, and let the other warm to about 88F for about a day or two which will make a much more intense wine. You can also load the hot one with tannin during fermentation whether from oak or fermentation tannin. I'm assuming these are frozen grapes, and not juice... If juice I'd ignore my advice and ferment both around 75F. If you want one to be more buttery you can do a slow cool MLF, while doing a warmer, well nourished MLF on the other. If you want to do a side by side comparison you should probably mix the two buckets then separate again since there could be substantial bucket to bucket variation.

[@davidbattrick3690]

@@TheHomeWinemakingChannel thank you. You confirmed a few of my Ideas. Will do!!!

[@Ajibolaa]

Wasn’t expecting 10 grams of tannins. I know they get reduced during fermentation. So my question is now that you’re aged the wine and it’s also known that more complex tannnis form from the broken tannins in the wine. Can you tell a noticeable difference between what it used to taste like with 10.5g in the young wine and what it taste like right now with the more complex bonded tannins

[@danielwhitley1140]

The problem of have the last couple of batches of wand that I have made is the alcohol taste is so overpowering you cannot taste the flavor of the fruit how can I fix that

[@richardwolske2015]

Can boiling the fruit give better color and body to my wine ?

[@TheHomeWinemakingChannel]

By boiling the fruit you are blowing off a lot of the good aromas and also cooking the fruit which changes the wine from a fresh fruit aromas to a cooked fruit aromas which are generally not preferred. To preserve aromas you will actually do the opposite and ferment cool which contains volatile aromas much better. In red wines you will often ferment warmer, on the skins and seeds but not as for aromas but for body and complexity. You give up a little fruit smell in exchange for tannin and extraction of harder to get to stuff. Alcohol is a great solvent also so if you ferment on the fruit you can extract a lot. You can improve extraction by using enzymes to break down the fruit like pectic enzyme or more exotic enzymes. A lot of cheaper red wines and wine lot's will use flash extraction where they heat the red wine must briefly to extract very quickly and save a lot of labor but the wines are very one dimensional. You can usually sniff out a flash extracted wine by the isoamyl acetate (banana runt smell), thin body and great color.

[@richardwolske2015]

@@TheHomeWinemakingChannel . Thank you so much ! You saved me a year ! 👍

[@Onager-xv3gz]

Bulk aging vs bottle aging... If using carboys, when do you decide to move to bottles? If you decide to bottle age, when do you decide to pull the trigger and move into bottles? So far, it seems like you would move from the main vessel straight to the bottle after everything has settled out and if you bulk age you would just keep it in the carboy longer (maybe rack once more to remove any sparse sediment) and move to bottles when almost ready to consume. This sound right or am I missing something?

[@TheHomeWinemakingChannel]

I like to bulk age reds for at least 8-12 months. At that point they begin to show what they really can be and you can take a better guess at a good blend if you plan to do blending. A summer cycle in bulk also assures that any instability that is going to show will show in carboy and can be dealt with or let to run its course. A white wine, fruit wine or rose can be bottled soon after it clears up and settles out. Those are generally better young so it is worth getting them into bottle by about 4-8 months.

[@Onager-xv3gz]

@@TheHomeWinemakingChannel Still very new to all this. What can be done after primary fermentation has completed, in secondary/conditioning? Just playing with simply juice concentrate wines at home, they are very flat and monotone as I did not use any tannin powders or acid blends in primary. Is it too late add in some lemon juice as a citric blending agent? What can be done vs what should be avoided? Thank you for your help!

[@aaronhussey7062]

I ordered a frozen grape pail and when it arrived it was already fermenting. I transferred to a bigger fermenter, checked the SG at 1.084, and added a small amount of SO2. Question is, has anyone had this happen and did the natural fermentation work out?

[@donnytorres848]

Thanks for the video! I actually just recieved my order from Brehm! I ordered two buckets of Pinot Noir. I'm trying a cold soak for the first time. Should I be concerned about oxidation during the cold soak? The lid that came with the bucket isnt very tight fitting.

[@bernarddahl]

This is super interesting, I like being "in" on the decision making, including waiting, easing, etc. Well done. I noticed you didn't do a "saignée", though you usually recommend it for bigger, bolder wines - which Super Tuscans are. Would you mind sharing your reasoning? Also: fine, I'll order some frozen grapes when the carboy real estate opens up in the basement - you got me into grapes (vs. Must), may as well try this :-)

[@TheHomeWinemakingChannel]

Thanks! I actually would have pulled some juice off but I just didn't have a lot of grapes to work with. I'd probably lean towards making two or three buckets if you were to do it, and considering pulling some juice off. The tricky thing with the frozen grapes and the rose is that it is difficult to get the juice off early enough to not have over extracted it. If I had a bucket that was obviously more liquid and less grapes than I wanted, I would definitely pull some off still.

[@beescheeseandwineplease889]

Seriously, please please make a white wine (press grapes before primary fermentation), want to see how you approach it

[@TheHomeWinemakingChannel]

I will put that on the list this year! Unless you are growing your own grapes, I prefer to get cold settled juice for white wine. This has a few advantages. You get a more uniform product. The grapes can be harvested cold and crushed and pressed at the vineyard, then stored in large refrigerated tanks. If you do have grapes instead, the key is to press and let the juice settle for a day, then rack it off and start the fermentation. There are some yeast options can't produce hydrogen sulfide and are amazing for white wines and rose. I use Renaissance Fresco primarily (technically meant for cider, but I love it on white wine). This allows you to ferment very cold and trap all those fruity aromas without risk of the wine going reductive on you. I'll make a video this year! I always get some Riesling from Lake Erie, and I may get a small traminette/Riesling harvest from my backyard vineyard.

[@akm7463]

do you have a recommended book about home winemaking? i like your vids but sometimes it can feel a bit disorganized and overwhelming with the amount of information

[@pilsplease7561]

i highly recommend doing frozen grapes if you cannot manage to purchase fresh grapes. i do sell some fresh grapes to local home winemakers yearly out of my home vineyard because I dont need all of them and it pays for anything I need to buy like sprays etc. Mostly makes the vineyard pay for itself.

[@the_crushlife]

What specific attributes are you measuring to know when your first fermentation is done? In other words, how do you know when its carboy go-time. Great video man.

[@viatori5566]

Can we get a list of times to add stuff? This is a great video but really hard to follow for a step by step process. Maybe I'm just slow 😅

[@abrad3061]

Love your videos but can you please do a video for like dummies like me super basic.

[@beescheeseandwineplease889]

I still struggle with exactly when I should end primary fermentation and take reds off the skins

[@TheHomeWinemakingChannel]

I prefer to let the wine pretty much finish fermenting on the skins. You can press earlier but you are losing skin time by doing it. You can press later also, but you start to risk oxidation. If pressing later, you would want to chill the must back down and blanket with inert gas. The benefit of extending the skin time on the back end is a little different than the cold soak on the front end though since you are not extracting the more alcohol soluble components like the seed tannin.

[@yankeedoodledandeefirecrac7518]

Im NOT familiar with those chemicals Can you at least hold them / Labels to camera so we can photo them >? so we may order them ???

[@eazyfernandez3824]

So much detail not said.. Please. Put more. Detail.. On pouring and. Metrials

[@artmakersworlds]

grrrr. WHERE does this go past how to buy and where to buy grapes, and get down to the process? I HAVE MY OWN SEEDLESS GRAPES I picked last summer. Frozen. I could probably fiddle with this video and find it but I think I'll just move on.

[@johngury]

Gonna gonna gonna

[@83dilpreetsingh]

Brother why you are wasting too much time??

[@themistoklis6237]

Brehm vineyards has to all time worst web page. Hope their grapes are better

[@latoyabaker131]

Do you have a email so I can ask you something directly