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How hard is it to do?
How good will it taste?
Can I make a Merlot? A Chardonnay?
Is making a red wine harder than making a white?
How long does it take to make a wine?
How big is each batch of wine? How many bottles?
What do I need to get started?
How much room do I need?
How much does it cost for equipment?
How much does it cost to make each wine?
Is this legal?
What is a “Brew on Premises”?
Easy, easy, easy. Each one of our wine concentrates comes with an excellent set of easy to follow instructions, including diagrams and tips for customization. The process mostly involves pouring the concentrate out of a bag, adding water (if necessary), adding a couple of labelled packages, and waiting patiently. You’ll eventually have to transfer it to another container, add a few more packages, stir it a bit, and wait a while longer. Bottling is the most time intensive part of the process, but still usually only takes a couple of hours, if not less. As you become familiar with the procedures, it becomes easier with every batch.
Your first time through is always a bit awkward, but after you’ve made a couple of wines, you’ll have the process down to a science. And remember: if you have any questions about one of our concentrates, we’re only a phone call away.
Very, very good. Remember that the final taste of your wine has a lot to do with the kind of concentrate that you make, as well as the amount of time that you age your wine for. In the same way that a $5 bottle of wine tastes very different than a $25 bottle of wine, there is a wide range of concentrates to fit most tastes and budgets. As long as you’re diligent, patient, and buy quality concentrates, your wines can taste every bit as good as those that are commercially made.
Absolutely. We carry a very wide range of wine concentrates, ranging from heavy, meaty reds, to light, fruity whites. We continually add more varieties to our year-round selection, and release special, Restricted Quantity wines every year for a limited time. We carry the standards, like Cabernet Sauvignon or Riesling, as well as different, lesser-known (but equally good) styles. We even have delicious Ice Wine-, Port-, and Sherry-style concentrates.
Not at all. Both are just as easy to make. Many people will let their red wines age for a while longer than their whites, but there’s no extra effort required in the production of a batch.
Strictly speaking, you can process a wine in roughly 4 to 6 weeks, depending on the concentrate. That said, your wine will almost always benefit from extra aging time, which, depending on your patience level, could involve cellaring your wine for two weeks, two months, or two years. Some wines age better than others, while some should be enjoyed quite young. The bare minimum processing time for our Grand Cru concentrates is four weeks, at which time you can proceed to bottling. However, you’ll be happier with the end result of you let it age for at least an extra month.
Twenty three litres is the standard batch size for all of our normal wine concentrates. That works out to approximately 30 standard, full sized 750mL bottles. The total number of bottles that you get depends on how much sediment settles during primary and secondary fermentation, as well as how good you are at getting every last drop of sediment-free wine from the carboy.
Our specialty wines, such as the Port style, Sherry style, and Ice Wine style concentrates, produce twelve litres of wine. That’s enough to fill roughly 30 half-bottles (375mL), or 15 full bottles (750mL), depending on your level of siphoning skill.
First, you’ll need a winemaking equipment package. We carry several options, from the most economical, basic package, to the five-star, everything-you-need-and-more winery-in-a-box. Think about what you need, how much space you have, and what kind of budget you’re planning on working within. Stop by one of our stores and look at the packages. If you have questions, don’t hesitate to ask.
Second, you’ll need a wine concentrate. Some of our equipment packages come with wine concentrates already included, so all you need to worry about is picking the variety of wine to make. In case you need help, there’s a whole other FAQ on the subject of picking a wine. Pick a style that you’ve tried before, keeping in mind that you’ll have over two cases of whatever you end up choosing. Most people start with a wine that doesn’t require much aging, as most novice winemakers tend to want to start drinking their first batch quite soon after they’ve made it. Build your cellar with a few early-consumers, then move on to wines that take a bit more time to mature.
Third, you’ll need patience. Wine takes time to produce, whether it’s made in a winery or in your basement, and involves plenty of waiting for reactions to happen, flavours to meld, and yeast to settle. People have been making their own wine for millennia, so sit back, relax, and enjoy the process. There’s plenty to learn, but also plenty of fun to be had.
That depends entirely on how ambitious your winemaking gets. The most basic setup—a carboy, a bucket, a siphon, a hydrometer, and a hand-corker— will require a little bit more than a square metre of space. If you start adding extras, like carboys, you’ll obviously need more room. Other than carboys, your main concern with space will be where to put all of the bottles of wine that you make. Four batches of wine will produce roughly 120 bottles, so cellar space is an important consideration. Know how much room you have, and produce and consume accordingly.
On a side note, many people living in apartments use the floor space in a closet for their winemaking, which generally provides more than enough room for a bucket, a couple of carboys, and a box full of extra gizmos. The biggest storage concern in apartments is the number of bottles of wine that you plan on cellaring.
Our most basic home winery can be had for less than forty dollars, and includes much of the essential equipment needed to make either wine or beer. It’s possible to produce your first 30 bottle batch of wine for less than one hundred dollars—or about $3 per bottle—including your equipment starter package, a wine concentrate, and some extra trimmings. Most people tend to spend slightly more, getting a few extra gadgets at the same time as their basic gear, but it’s not absolutely necessary.
Of course, you can always start with the basics, then add to your winery gradually. We carry a wide range of nifty, useful tools and equipment, designed specifically to help home winemakers save time and effort, though it’s by no means essential to have a winemaking toy-box of bottle washers, fillers, and auto-siphons. Still, it certainly helps to speed things up on bottling day.
This depends entirely on what sort of wine you decide to make. Prices vary depending on the juice/concentrate/invert-sugar proportions in any given product, with less expensive concentrates costing well under two dollars per bottle to produce. That said, even our outstanding, award-winning Cru Select wines all work out to less than four dollars per bottle.
Absolutely, as long as you don’t sell the wine that you make. Laws on home wine and beer making vary quite a bit from country to country, and even from province to province. The most important thing to remember is that you are NOT ALLOWED to sell any of the wine or beer that you produce. You may certainly give your friends and neighbours bottles of your wine as gifts, but selling it is strictly illegal.
There are, in a few Canadian provinces, establishments known as a “Brew on Premises”, “U Brew”, or “U Vint”, which essentially take over much of the processing and storage of your wine, in return for a “winery fee”. They often have elaborate bottling setups, specialized corking equipment, and other conveniences that are beyond the budget and floor space of the average home winemaker.
We are frequently asked by people originally from British Columbia and Ontario if we can make their wine in the store for them, rather than them having to use their own equipment to make their wine at home. Unfortunately, the answer is no. While we’d love to be able to offer such a service, it is currently against Alberta liquor laws to do so. If you’d like to see the legislation changed, let your MLA know.
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