This article describes a very simple and fun way to make a cheap, but still pleasant to drink wine. It's certainly no substitute for a good beer or quality wine, but it's perfect for occasions when you need a lot of inexpensive alcohol. The initial investment for the equipment is around 4-5 euros, the cost of the ingredients is around 4 euros for 4 liters of "wine". The drink obtained has an alcohol content of 8-10%; this means you can get a liter of drink for 1 euro, a price you can't find in any shop! You can drink this wine after two weeks, but the flavor improves enormously after 3-4.
Ingrediants
- 700 g of white sugar
- 1 pack of normal baking powder (better to avoid the fast fermentation one)
- 2 packs of Kool Aid of the flavor of your choice
- 3, 5 liters of water
Steps
Step 1. Prepare the equipment and ingredients for bottling
- Most of the tools used for this project are already available at home, while you can retrieve the bottles from the recycling bins or you can reuse the ones you use, if you drink bottled water. If you wash them with dish soap, soak them in bleach for a few minutes and rinse them thoroughly, you have nothing to fear.
- You can buy a rubber hose in the household goods centers for about 3-4 euros. It is a tube that is generally used with ice cream makers; you can also find it in aquarium stores or hardware stores, but you risk paying a little more for it.
Step 2. Disinfect the material you will use to bottle the wine - without neglecting the bottles, funnel and rubber tube - by immersing it in a pot of boiling water for at least three minutes
By doing so, you eliminate all bacteria that are potentially contaminating the equipment; if you don't do this, the bacteria could kill the yeasts or spoil the wine.
Make sure you use a different pot than the one designed to dissolve the sugar in the water
Step 3. Bring the water to a boil to kill all types of bacteria
Use the jug or bottle to measure the liquid you need and fill a pot with water and sugar. As the solution warms up, stir to dissolve all the sugar and then wait for it to come back to room temperature.
Step 4. Activate the yeast
Pour the contents of the package into 120 ml of hot water (not boiling, otherwise you will kill the microorganisms) with a teaspoon of sugar, let the mixture rest for a couple of minutes and then mix gently; then proceed to the next step.
Step 5. Use a clean funnel to fill the carafe or bottle with the cold solution of water and sugar
Do not pour too much liquid, you need to leave some space for the foam that will form.
Step 6. When the yeast is active (the mixture is foamy) pour it into the bottle using the funnel
Add another liter of hot water, put the cap on the containers and shake them; make sure the sugar is completely dissolved and the yeast is well incorporated.
Step 7. Find a safe place to store the bottle upright, such as the bathroom cabinet, basement or behind a desk
Take the balloon and drill some holes with the pin; remove the cap from the bottle and cover the opening with the balloon and secure it with a rubber band. Carefully transfer the bottle to a plastic bag to catch any liquid that may overflow during fermentation. Put the bottle in the place of your choice, letting it rest for about two weeks until the balloon is no longer filled with gas; this swells with the gases produced by fermentation, which in turn come out of the holes. However, when the production of this gas stops, the holes close and the air cannot contaminate the wine. This is the process by which alcohol is formed and is called fermentation.
- If you have opted for the two-liter bottle, you can avoid using the balloon by closing the cap without tightening it completely; in this way, you let out the gas that accumulates, but you avoid that air can enter at the end of the fermentation.
- Alternatively, you can use a simple airlock valve that costs a few euros.
Step 8. When the balloon no longer inflates, the fermentation is over
Remove the bottle from the place where you put it, taking care not to shake it. At this point, the alcohol has been produced by the yeasts and the liquid can get you drunk; however, it is still tasteless and has an acquired taste. If the product has deteriorated - usually due to a lack of hygiene - the drink tastes like vinegar; you can sip it to make sure, but it should be pretty noticeable. By waiting a little longer and letting all the product complete the fermentation process, you can get a better drink.
Step 9. Remove the dead yeast
There should be a thin layer of inactive yeast at the bottom of the bottle; it is not a poisonous substance, but it tastes bad and could make you suffer from flatulence. Place the bottle on a relatively high surface and place the second four-liter bottle on the floor. Using the rubber tube, make a siphon to transfer the tasteless liquid into the new container, leaving out the residues deposited on the bottom. Try not to make a lot of sketches; when only a thin layer of wine remains on top of the sediments, stop transferring it and throw away what's left.
- Alternatively, you can filter the liquid through a suitably sanitized cloth.
- There is no need to change the containers, this procedure only serves to get rid of dead yeast residues that could ruin the wine, give it a bad taste and cause diarrhea. Remember that the eye also wants its part; you can't feel proud of a cloudy wine, but a perfectly transparent product with an alcohol content of 14% is a source of satisfaction, no matter how you made it and how cheap it is.
Step 10. Add two packs of Kool Aid powder to the new bottle you poured the wine into
Close it with the cap and shake it for a few seconds to evenly mix the ingredients. Taste the wine - it probably tastes terrible, but don't throw it away, it will get better over time! Add some sugar to improve the flavor, but what the product really needs is good aging. Let the bottle rest for about a week, check whenever it is possible that no more gas has accumulated and in this case let it out by opening the cap a little and then tightening it again.
Step 11. At the end of the third week, pour the liquid again, but this time into the small bottles
You need about eight half-liter bottles; the smaller they are, the easier it is to hide and use them.
Step 12. When the wine has aged for at least four weeks, it should be ready for consumption
Enjoy it and don't be afraid to tell people that you made it yourself.
Advice
- Kool Aid is only for imparting flavor; you can easily replace it with Gatorade or other similar products.
- Once the wine is produced and bottled, check the bottles every week or so, to make sure that no more gas is being generated; if they look a little swollen, loosen the cap slightly to release the pressure and then tighten it again. Storing them in the refrigerator eliminates this problem.
- You can put the wine in the refrigerator for a couple of days before pouring it into other containers; in this way, the yeast and the other sediments are deposited on the bottom, facilitating the operations.
- The wine should last at least two months; however, it is better to drink it after a month, but before this deadline.
- You can get a higher concentration of alcohol by using better yeasts. Some shops that sell items for home brewing of beer offer yeasts for distillates and "turbo" which allow to obtain a percentage of around 20%.
- The best advice for home brewing fermented spirits is to be "patient"; after two months you can drink wine, after six its taste is interesting, after a year it can be defined as good, but after five you may even wonder why you have bought commercial wine so far.
- By increasing the doses of yeast and sugar you do not get a drink with a higher alcohol content; the yeasts die when the alcohol concentration reaches 10%, while the extra sugar makes the wine sweeter. If you want to work on the alcohol level, you have to buy an "alembic" and distil the liquid. It is a more complex process and, if performed badly, even dangerous: it is called "clandestine distillation"; perhaps you have already heard of fires or stills that exploded while trying to make spirits at home, it's not a funny thing at all! The amateur brewing of fermented spirits (wine and beer) is perfectly legal, but not the sale, unless the proper taxes are paid. As for spirits, both distillation and sale are prohibited.
- Normal sugar does not contain the trace elements that are essential for the life of yeasts; to improve the "health" of these microorganisms, buy special nutrients at a brewery store or add some resins to the solution.
- If you immerse the 2-liter plastic bottles in boiling water, they shrink to half the volume; carefully monitor the process.
- Using an Ale yeast (available in specialty stores) you can get a better drink with less phenol aftertaste. During the "fermentation" make sure that the temperature remains between 20 and 24 ° C, to limit the production of these substances.
Warnings
- Never close the 2-liter bottles with the original cap during the fermentation phase, otherwise the pressure builds up inside until it makes them burst violently.
- It is an alcoholic beverage and carries the same health risks as regular wine or beer; if consumed in moderation, it does not cause problems, but if drunk in large quantities or too often, it could cause serious problems. This wine impairs mental clarity, do not drive after drinking it.
- If you absolutely have to carry it in your car, at least put it in the trunk. If you keep the bottles in the passenger compartment, according to the laws in your country, you could be fined, as the containers are not sealed.
- When you add the Kool Aid, go over a sink or bathtub. Sometimes, a reaction is triggered similar to that generated by Mentos with Diet Coke; the "wine" quickly forms a foam which overflows from the container. Since the only substance that escapes is foam, there is little chance of losing the wine; however, Kool Aid stains are difficult to remove, so work over a sink to be safe!
- In many areas, making homemade wine is completely legal, but it is not allowed to sell it; moreover, the drink is always subject to the rules concerning alcohol and minors. If you think the production of this wine may be a problem, consult your local laws and regulations before proceeding.
- After fermentation the smell is terrible.
