Let’s Get This Party Started

Making your own wine begins by visiting your local Fermenters Guild store. They’re in almost every community.

• During this short visit, you select the wine and kick off the fermentation process. Your options are almost limitless – from Amarone to Zinfandel.
• Standard pricing ranges from $100 to $225, for a 30 bottle kit (so depending on how many friends are joining the fun, you may want to make multiple types, so you can share).

• Once you’ve selected your wine, you’ll work with your personal winemaker to officially start the fermentation by adding the yeast. And voila - in about 15 minutes, you’re on your way.
• For the next few weeks, your personal winemaker will care for your wine at the store, clearing and filtering it just like they do in a commercial winery. You’re blissfully unaware of the many activities going on behind the scenes, until…

The Fun Part

Four to six weeks later, you return to the store to bottle your wine. This part of the process takes less than one hour, and is the perfect excuse for a group get-together.

• Together, you sanitize and fill the bottles, then cork and label them - using either labels provided by the store or personalized ones you create yourself. Haven’t you always wanted to see your name on the side of a wine bottle?
• You and your friends may also want to start another wine kit while you’re there. The next thing you know you’ll have your own wine cellar!

Patience...

Lots of things improve with age – and wine is one of them. The wine that you take home from the store may already be tasty, but it is not quite ready to be enjoyed.

• Depending on the type of wine you’ve made, it should age between two weeks to six months. It should be stored on its side in a cool, dark room.
• The most enjoyable way to experience the aging process is to try a bottle every few weeks. But be warned: many people find the last bottle tastes the best!