Freezer Wine and Sangria

I was reading a book called Possum Living by Dolly Freed, and came across her recipe for grocery store wine. I have been wanting to get into home brewing but couldn't justify the cost of what some of the startup materials were, then I found her simple recipe and figured it was a low risk way to start and see if I could make something palatable. So here is the recipe with some notes on what I did:

~~ Ingredients / Materials ~~

• - 1 gallon jug
• - 19 oz white sugar
• - large can frozen grape concentrate (defrosted)
• - water
• - One package dry bread yeast (1/4oz or 7grams)
• - Optional: Balloon / one way brewers valve
• - Optional: Plastic tube

~~ Instructions ~~

1. 1. Add the 19oz of sugar to the gallon jug
2. 2. Add the large can of frozen grape concentrate
3. 3. Add about 3/4 gallon of water to the jug
4. 4. Add the yeast and stir
5. 5. Let the foaming settle out, then top off with water to fill it up, leave at least a couple inches of air at the top
6. 6. Cover top loosely with the gallon cap, or other topper
7. 7. Let it sit for 10-25 days in a warm place. Do not put in direct sunlight. It will be done when no more bubbles are starting to come up.
8. 8. Once done stick it in the fridge, let it sit for two days to let sediment settle out. You can stick the jug in the fridge before fermenting is done, this will result in a sweeter wine.

The finished product, would have been more clear but this is before letting it sit for a couple of days in the fridge.

Notes:

If making sangria, have some fruit ready to add to the wine when your ready to drink it. If you add fruit to the wine and let it sit, the yeast may start to eat the sugars from the fruit and the fermentation process will start back up, that's if the alcohol content hasn't killed them yet. I let fruit and this wine sit in a glass in the fridge for one day and it ended up tasting off.

We want to make a one way seal on the top of the container so that air can get out, but not in. This is so we make sure the yeast are producing alcohol and not other things. Yeast can operate with aerobic respiration (with oxygen) and anaerobic respiration (without oxygen). If air cannot get inside the jug then the yeast will be growing and eating sugar in the absence of oxygen, this will result in alcohol and carbon dioxide. If you let too much oxygen in, the yeast will also operate aerobically, and this will produce an off flavor and smell similar to vinegar.

Air needs to be able to leave the jug since the yeast will be spitting out CO2 as they eat the sugar. If the jug is sealed it will eventually burst.

I have made this twice now, once by leaving the cap of the jug loosely twisted on, and by having a balloon stretched over the top with a needle poked hole in it. Both methods worked, though the balloon method definitely let less air in than the loose cap.

The ferment will be done when the bubbles stop coming up. This means either all the sugars have been eaten up, or the alcohol content ended up killing the yeast.

Putting the jug in the fridge before the fermenting has stopped will cold crash the yeast, leaving some uneaten sugars, which will produce a sweeter wine.

Leaving the jug in the fridge a couple days before pouring off or siphoning out will make the batch more clear overall. Try not to disturb the sediment on the bottom or it will get kicked back up.

Make sure the jug and all measuring tools have been cleaned, any unwanted germs could cause the batch to go bad.

Disclaimer: If it smells bad or tastes bad, DO NOT DRINK IT. I am not responsible for what you do in your own home. Drink responsibly.