How to Make Homemade Peach Wine

Wine can be made out of virtually any fruit that has enough sugar in it, and peaches are a perfect choice. Making wine may seem difficult, but it's actually relatively easy. With the appropriate supplies and equipment, plus a little knowledge, you can make 5 gallons of fantastic-tasting peach wine.

Things You'll Need

• 15 lb. peaches
• 1 package Epernay yeast
• 8 lb. sugar
• 1 tsp. pectic enzyme
• 5 Campden tablets, crushed
• 6 tsp. yeast nutrient
• 6 tsp. acid blend
• 2 tsp. grape tannin
• 1 1/4 tsp. potassium sorbate
• Hydrometer
• Acid test kit
• Potato masher
• Strainer bag
• 5-gallon, food-grade bucket with lid
• 5-gallon glass carboy
• Air lock and stopper
• Siphon hose
• Wine bottles with new corks
• Corking tool
• Sanitizing cleanser

Instructions

Prepare the Equipment

1. Obtain your equipment. Specialized wine making equipment such as hydrometers, glass carboys and siphons can be purchased from stores specializing in brewing and wine making. There are also online resources available. Costs for a complete wine making kit generally run between $150 and $300 U.S. Other items can be obtained from your local retail department store.

2. Sanitize all equipment that will come in contact with the ingredients prior to making your wine.

3. Obtain wine bottle from friends, local restaurants or collect them yourself.

Prepare the Fruit

1. Wash 15 lb. of fully-ripened peaches thoroughly. Quarter the peaches and remove the stone, stem, leaves and any bruised flesh.

2. Place the peaches in zip-lock bags and freeze them for at least two weeks. Freezing the peaches breaks down their cell walls, so the juice will release more easily.

3. Process your peaches. Place portions of the frozen fruit in a large bowl and crush them with a potato masher or similar tool.

4. Pour each portion of processed peaches into the strainer bag, allowing the juice to run into a 5-gallon bucket. The bucket will act as your primary fermenter. The processed juice and fruit is called the "must."

5. Seal the strainer bag after all the fruit has been processed and place it in the bucket.

Adding Ingredients

1. Add 5 crushed Campden tablets to the must, stirring well to dissolve them completely. Let the mixture sit overnight. Campden tablets sterilize the must, killing any wild yeast.

2. Add the pectic enzyme, yeast nutrient, grape tannin and enough acid blend to bring the level up to 0.65 percent. Stir well and let the must sit again overnight.

3. Dissolve 8 lb. of sugar in 1 gallon of boiling water. Once it has reached room temperature, add it to the must.

4. Stir the must and add water to bring it up to the 5 gallon level.

5. Check the specific gravity of the must using a hydrometer. The specific gravity should be around 1.09, or higher. If it's not, add more sugar and test again.

6. Add the yeast to the must. There is no need to stir.

7. Place the lid on the bucket loosely.

Primary Fermentation

1. Punch the strainer bag down into the must and stir it gently twice a day. Watch your must for fermentation to begin within the first 24 hours. Foam will begin to accumulate on the surface of the must.

2. Check the specific gravity of the must around day five to seven. If the must has reached 1.04 or less, squeeze the strainer bag to extract any juice, then discard the fruit pulp.

3. Sanitize the siphon hose with cleanser and use it to transfer the must from the primary fermenter to a glass carboy, which will act as your secondary fermenter. Ensure that there is sufficient head space between the must and the top of the carboy.

4. Sanitize the airlock and stopper, then fill the airlock properly with water and place them into the top of the carboy. This will seal the carboy, protecting the must from contamination.

5. Observe the fermentation process in your carboy each day. You will notice bubbles rising in the carboy and carbon dioxide gas escaping from the airlock.

6. Allow the must to sit in the carboy until the yeast settles. This may take several weeks.

7. Siphon the liquid into the bucket when the yeast sediment is about 1 inch thick, being careful to leave the sediment behind in the glass carboy.

8. Stir the wine vigorously in the bucket to drive off any excess carbon dioxide gas.

9. Clean the glass carboy and siphon the contents of the bucket back into the carboy and replace the airlock. Top off the wine with water to leave about 2 inches between the liquid and the top of the carboy.

10. Repeat steps 7 through 9 occasionally until the wine clears, usually within two to three months. During this time, the must will be turning into wine.

Bottling and Storage

1. Test the specific gravity of the wine occasionally. When it is at or below 1.00, the wine is ready to bottle.

2. Siphon the liquid into the bucket for the last time, leaving the sediment behind in the glass carboy.

3. Stir in 1 1/4 tsp. of potassium sorbate into the wine to stabilize it and prevent yeast from further developing once the wine is bottled.

4. Siphon the wine from the bucket into the sanitized wine bottles.

5. Soak the wine corks in warm water for about 15 minutes.

6. Cork each bottle using the corking tool.

7. Store your wine in a cool, dry place. To keep your wine from spoiling, store your wine on it's side to keep the corks moist.

Tips & Warnings

• While you can drink your wine immediately, allowing it to age for a while to improve its flavor. Properly made, your wine will keep for years.

• Thoroughly sanitize any equipment that will come in contact with your ingredients. Check the laws in your area pertaining to home wine making.

References

• Home Winemaking Instructions and Information

Resources

• Beerwine.com