Let's Make Wine! Trivia Quiz

Answer: Sodium metabisulphite

If any stray bacteria or fungi are present on your equipment then it is very likely that they will kill the yeast when you add it and not only stop the wine from fermenting properly but may also give a tainted flavour to the finished product. Bleach would do the job but would probably give a nasty taste to your finished wine. Boiling water would also do the trick but using the metabisulphite just makes sure.

Sterility at all times is essential in making wine.

Answer: Any of these

You can make wine out of just about anything edible. The best choice is something that contains sugars but even that isn't essential as you add sugar during the fermentation process. Sugar is needed to produce the alcohol and to produce the correct level of sweetness to the finished product. I have made a very nice peapod wine for a number of years now and, although people pull a face when I tell them about it, they usually rather like it when they taste it! You should make the most of whatever is cheap or plentiful from your garden and don't forget you can freeze things to use later on.

The best wine I ever made was from over-ripe peaches but I've had success with parsley, honeysuckle flowers, elderflowers, parsnips, beetroot (a yummy spiced wine the colour of pink felt tip pen ink!) and apples among others. Less successful was wine made from instant coffee and from Earl Grey tea.

There are a number of methods of extracting the juice but usually the fruit or veg are boiled or have boiling water added to them and are then left for a few days to steep. The yeast is added to the cooled liquid either at the start or the end of the process.

Answer: Demijohn

The strained juice is mixed with the sugar and poured into the demijohn then the yeast added and the level topped up so that it comes to the shoulder of the jar. It's important to leave an air space at the top so that the carbon dioxide produced by fermentation can escape. The yeast will multiply, turning the liquid very cloudy and producing copious amounts of gas - this turns the whole thing very frothy and the bubbles will fill up the air space at the top.

Some people like to add yeast nutrient, tannin and other ingredients at this stage (and some recipes call for it). These will affect the final product by improving the action of the yeast or altering the flavour.

Answer: Carbon dioxide

An air-lock must be fitted to the top of the demijohn to allow the carbon dioxide to escape while stopping bacteria, fungi and particles from entering your wine. Failure to do this may result in your wine being spoiled and made undrinkable.

In summer I leave my demijohn in the kitchen but in colder weather the airing cupboard is an ideal place to leave it. If you don't have one then you can buy special heating belts and blankets for the demijohn - probably only for the enthusiast!

Answer: Racking

This process is called racking - a word probably derived from an old, obsolete French word raqué which means to press wine from the dregs of grapes. It separates off some of the dead yeast cells and other fibrous debris from the liquid and will allow the live yeast to ferment better as well as giving a cleaner taste to the finished wine.

Answer: Hydrometer

A little of the wine is poured into a jar and the hydrometer put into it. Depending on the specific gravity (and alcohol content) of the wine, the instrument will float at different levels and the alcohol content can be read off on the stem of the hydrometer.

This can be done at any stage of the process but is often done at the end to check and achieve the desired alcohol concentration of the finished wine. Once you have a reading, you can use a table which will tell you how much sugar to add to bring the wine up to this. If it's higher, then water can be added but this may also affect the flavour by diluting the finished wine.

Answer: Lees

This word is yet another to probably come from the old French "lies", although it is thought that itself may have come from the Latin or an old Celtic word.

Johnson, in his 18th century dictionary, defines lees as "dregs or anything thrown away"

Answer: All of these can be used

Indeed, all of these are options and it will depend on the cause of the haziness as to which works for you. Pectolytic enzyme and methylated spirits remove pectin haze, bentonite will remove proteins. These agents are called finings and sometimes isinglass is also used to remove protein haze. This is not suitable for vegetarians though as it's made from the swim bladder of fish.

Sometimes all of these fail and then leaving it somewhere cool, just leaving it for a long time or adding a small amount of clear wine can miraculously produce the result you desire.

Answer: Sterilise the bottles and closures

Sterility is vital right to the very end! Letting bacteria or fungus in now will ruin your wine or may start if fermenting again in the bottle. This could lead to a rather nasty explosion. If you are making a sparkling wine then you will need to choose special thicker walled bottles and a proper closure for the cork to prevent the gas from pushing out the cork or breaking the bottle open with its pressure.

Labelling is important so you know what you're drinking but all of your wine will be delicious we hope so lucky dip may not be so bad! Plastic bottles should probably not be used unless the wine is one that is to be drunk very soon and a half-filled bottle will be at risk of contamination.

Answer: All of these and more

Yes, there are competitions for the best wines. Some are run by winemakers clubs but many village shows have a winemaking section that you can enter. The competition can be very fierce! In all of these cases, make sure your wine is crystal clear, the closure is fitted well and has a nice cap over it and the label is elegant and clear. I don't enter competitions but I do sometimes give my wine as a present and it's amazing how much better it tastes if it looks professional.

If this has encouraged you to have a go then there are many websites which give tips and hints on how to do it plus recipes. I have found the book "First Steps in Winemaking" by C. J. Berry very useful but there are many others available.

The equipment can be purchased new from winemaking shops or on the internet but you can often pick up a lot of it very cheaply from charity shops.