Glad to see folks are having fun with this recipe.

To clear your wine, get several one gallon glass jugs and several drilled rubber corks and airlocks. They are cheap. A cork and airlock set will run you about $2.00. Put your strained wine into the jugs, leaving 2-3 inches air space at the top, put water in the airlocks and attach them. Allow this wine to sit in a cool, dark place for a month or more. You will see the lees accumulating on the bottom of the jugs. When the wine is cleared to your liking (usually 2 months or so), use plastic tubing to siphon it off the lees and bottle it, being careful only to draw out the wine that is clear. Leave behind an inch or so at the bottom with the lees. Then you will have a finished wine.

I also recommend using wine bottles with screw tops, rather than Mason jars. Wine bottles are shaped like they are to prevent oxidation. When you fill your bottles, it is best to leave the lid on loosely for the first week to 10 days to make sure all fermentation has stopped. If it hasn't and you tighten the lid too soon, the bottle can explode.

I have had good luck with this recipe halving the sugar, too, for a less sweet wine. I prefer wines semi-sweet.

Anybody have any input on the longevity of this once it is bottled? I have a bumper crop of scuppernongs and thought this might be just the ticket to use them up!

I made this wine last year, my first time wine making, and I learned a lot :-) I did a second fermentation in one gallon water jugs with the fermenting cork on top for a couple of months and then siphoned into wine bottles, corked, and buried in the garden. I tasted some before burying and it is a bit sweet but still better than I expected for homemade wine. It was nice and clear with a better bouquet after the second fermentation. I also used this recipe to make pear wine which turned out great! Even better than the grape in my opinion. About to make it again and this year adding raisons to the mix. Really nice recipe :-)

I'm getting ready to strain and put in carboy with airlock. I tried a different recipe last year and ended up throwing it out. I've sampled this one and it taste great. This will be my first time finishing a wine. My question to Patti is, "why did you bury your wine in the garden"?

Hey Beka...I used a carboy with airlock last year (couldn't remember the name of it until I saw your post :-) It worked really well as I didn't like the way the wine smelled with the dead biologicals sitting at the bottom. Plus...the thought of that just sorta makes me want to gag. LOL I buried the wine because the earth stays a nice constant cool temperature much like a wine cellar. I had read lots of recipes last year before I settled on this one and one winemaker indicated this wine gets better after two or three years aging. So...I'm aging some. I have a few small bottles (those single serve wine bottles that come in 4-packs now) in my refrigerator since last year as well. I'm going to use those to test when to dig up the buried stuff....although I think the refrigerator temp isn't ideal. I suppose a wine refrigerator would work just as well as burying it. I just like the idea of wine buried in my garden. Very romantic and poetic, right?? LOL

After searching recipe after recipe to make muscadine wine, I found this one. It was easy and my wine tastes FANTASTIC!!!! I'm looking for more fruit to try variations on the recipe. Please don't hesitate to try the recipe. You will be so pleased and proud of yourself! I am!!!!

I found another recipe that suggested using Champagne Yeast. I called Hop City (home brew store) and the expert there agreed this would be a good yeast to use. It will produce a dryer (as in less sweet) wine. My batch has been fermenting about a week now. Going to add the champagne yeast this week-end.

I followed the recipe instructions. I strained off the fruit and filtered several times through coffee filters. It is now in mason jars with homemade toppers. Once the sediment settles and I siphon off the good stuff...do I need to keep in fridge or is it safe in the pantry? Thanks!

I've made beer several times, but this is my first attempt at making wine, and this recipe is super easy!! I'm at 5 weeks in now. I fermented mine in a plastic food grade bucket that I typically use for bottling my beer. Just today I filtered the wine once and transferred it into a glass carboy with an air-lock. I'm gonna let it settle for several days then as long as it clears okay, I'll rack it off and bottle it.....if it's not as clear as I want I may filter it a couple more times before bottling it.

The wine taste really good, it was sweeter early on, and now not quite as much.....but still sweet enough.

I'm anxious to try peaches next year!

Hi Patti... thanks for explaining why you buried the wine. That is very romantic. I may bury a bottle or two... how did your pear wine turn out! I think next year I'll try blackberry using this recipe.

Hey Patti, So good 2-Hear Your Wine turn out Great Last Yr. Try one of these 2-Yeast. The one i used last yr. "Lalvin EC-1118" really impressed with this Last yr. It looked like Wet Wonder Bread in Muddy water. With outstanding action! This year I am using "Vintners Harvest MA33". Will let You know results. Cheers Kenneth

Do I use 4 quarts of grapes with hulls and all, or only juice.

Hi Hunter... I mashed the grapes and used hulls and all. After 25 days, I used a large strainer to remove the hulls ans seeds. Then I strained it through a jelly strainer bag and then cleaned the bag and put coffee filters in it and again strained it through that. I had to change the coffee several times for a batch and also I didn't wait for it to drip but I squeezed the bag. Then I put in a carboy with an airlock. I'm leaving it for about 30 days before putting in bottles. I have about a week to go but the wine has really cleared.

For what it's worth? I use food grade 5 gallon buckets and a window sheer to hold the mashed fruit. If you have the bucket lids you can drill a hole in the lid and put the airlock in it.

I just made this recipe with half the recommended amount of sugar, and it is perfect. I am quite impressed with the outcome, and will make this recipe from now on.
Jeff Vandiver, NW Alabama

Wondering if you can use old fashined oats vs. steel cut as they are hard to find in my area?