Fixing homemade wine with alcohol. Analysis: fixing homemade wines at home

Wine prepared at home, as a rule, has a strength of 10° to 11°, and it is almost impossible to increase it above 14° by fermenting the wort alone. Therefore, to fix homemade wines, special technologies are used, an integral part of which is the addition of alcohol.

Securing wines helps protect them from unnecessary changes that may occur after bottling. Traditionally, the following methods are used to increase the strength of drinks:

• increasing the alcohol content;
• freezing.

Some fastening techniques

Fortification

The simplest method of fortification is the addition of ethyl alcohol at a certain stage of fermentation.

The main difference between the process of making strong wines is the moment at which the drink is fixed. This method allows you to stop fermentation and maintain the desired percentage of sugar in the wine.

In order to fix the drink, experts most often use purified vodka, alcohol, and sometimes cognac, which are added in the required proportions to the wine material. At the discretion of the manufacturer, aromatic infusions of various plants and sugar syrup can be added to homemade wine, which gives it a unique taste or hue.

Alcoholization differs in the following types, which directly depend on the type of wine produced:

• on the pulp;
• unfermented wort to obtain blending material;
• wort before fermentation;
• wort during fermentation.

Each of these techniques has its own characteristics. For example, the color of the drink plays an important role. For white wine, the method of fastening on pulp is not suitable, since the technology is used to make it without using it. But this technique is suitable for red wine, since it is made from the must of red grapes with pulp.

Alcoholization of wort on pulp

This technique has one important feature, which is that the fruits themselves are not subjected to squeezing the juice out of them, but are simply crushed. Sugar is added to the resulting mixture and left to ferment for a period of 3 to 5 days at a temperature not exceeding 26°C, in containers with a loosely closed lid. After the concentration of the wort reaches 6–9% sugar, it is placed under a press, 90 percent alcohol is added and left to infuse for another week. At the next stage, the wine is filtered, clarified and stored until fully matured. The ripening period itself can last more than 2 years, during which time the drink acquires a complex taste and delicate aroma.

Method of alcoholizing young wine

When increasing the degree of wine raw materials by alcoholization, it is quite difficult to choose the correct proportion of added alcohol. To calculate the required amount, you need to take into account that when adding 1% alcohol or 2% vodka to ten-proof wine, its strength increases by 1 degree.

For example, consider a simple calculation. It is required to increase the strength of ten-proof homemade wine (volume 30 l) by 4°, that is, up to 14°.

To achieve this result, you will need the following volume of vodka: (30*2*4)/100 = 2.4 liters.

If the strength of the drink needs to be increased from 10° to 16° (that is, increase the total degree by 6), then the calculation will look like this: (30*2*6)/100 = 3.6 liters.

The required amount of vodka must be added to the already fermented wine, mixed and left to assimilate (completely combine the parts of vodka with the infusion) for a period of 5 days. Adding vodka to the wine material will cause the infusion to lose its transparency and a little sediment will form inside it again. The wine raw materials are kept in a tank for 15–20 days, then removed from the sediment, bottled and sealed. Pasteurization is no longer required at this stage.

Freezing

Freezing is a somewhat forgotten but effective way to increase the strength of homemade wine, which does not require any additives or top-ups.

This method is based on the fact that when the temperature drops, water molecules begin to crystallize, but wine molecules do not.

When using this method, you need to take into account that when freezing, the amount of the resulting fortified drink is reduced several times compared to the initial amount of raw materials, and it turns out to be very strong and with a rich taste.

This recipe is good to use at home if we are talking about small volumes of raw materials (from 10 to 15 liters). Homemade wine is bottled in 2-liter plastic bottles and placed in the freezer. After a few hours, small ice crystals and unfrozen wine liquid form in the bottles. This step requires you to separate the ice by transferring the liquid from the bottle into another container.

The remaining icy slurry should not be thrown away, since when it thaws it will have a strength of only 1 degree and have a pleasant wine taste. This liquid can be re-frozen in ice cube trays and added to tea or smoothies.

From 10–15 liters of raw materials, 5–7 liters of double strength wine are obtained.

Due to the low temperature, the infusion becomes cloudy during freezing, but after thawing it will become transparent again. Before serving, fortified wine should be allowed to breathe for half an hour, this gives its taste softness.

Every normal middle-aged man has probably tried port or Madeira at least once in his life - drinks from the Soviet past. Fortified wine was then consumed in much larger quantities than dry wine, most likely due to its increased strength. But let's not get too nostalgic. We will tell you about the fortified one and how it differs from the usual one in our article. Also from the material you will learn how to make this drink with your own hands at home.

Definition: fortified wine

This is a type of alcoholic beverage that is made from ordinary wort or pulp through both complete and incomplete fermentation, with the addition of ethyl alcohol or other alcohol-containing strong alcohol. What does it mean, simply put, that a wine is fortified? At the final stages of production, alcohol is added to the product. Thus, the drink has a higher strength (in some cases up to 20%) compared to unfortified wines. And a characteristic taste.

These drinks traditionally include: sherry, port, Madeira, Marsala. Also - some Tokay and

How to use it correctly?

Fortified wine should be drunk as an aperitif (a drink that stimulates the appetite) or a digestif (a drink that aids digestion). Serve chilled to 10-18 degrees. Preferably from special glasses: narrow and tall. Cocktails are also prepared based on port wine, Madeira, and sherry, which are also considered aperitifs.

Fortified wines go well with: port wine - with blue cheese, almonds, walnuts, chocolate, dried fruits; sherry - with sheep cheese, olives, almonds, ham; Madeira with first courses, cheeses and nuts; Marsala - with chocolate desserts.

From the history

Wine fortification began in time immemorial. Wine merchants who transported alcohol by water (which sometimes took quite a long time) noticed that wine spoiled too quickly from temperature changes and constant shaking during inclement weather. They also came up with the idea of ​​adding grape alcohol to dry wine. And, I must say, this unusual drink at that time appealed to many true connoisseurs of alcoholic beverages. This kind of wine can be white, red, or rose. The usual strength is from 16 to 22%. Once opened, bottles last longer than table bottles.

Sherry

This fortified wine made from white grapes is one of the national symbols of Spain. It is known that grapes were brought to Spain by the Phoenicians back in 1100 BC. The Arabs who later invaded Spain tried to uproot the vineyards for religious reasons (the Koran forbade the consumption of alcohol). But the inhabitants of the province of Jerez saved the vine from being cut down, telling the caliph that they would produce raisins from the grapes to feed the soldiers. The Christians, who defeated the Arabs in the 13th century, began producing and drinking sherry again. The warriors even gave it to their horses so that the animals would become more fearless and not be afraid of their enemies. In England, sherry began to be called "sherry", due to the difficulty of pronouncing the word for the British. By the way, sherry became the first known wine to travel in barrels to the New World, thus discovering America. The standards by which it is produced are approved by a special document, according to which only wine produced in the “magic triangle”, the province of Jerez, can be called this way.

Port and Madeira

This alcoholic drink comes from Portugal. It is here, in the city of Porto, that the production of this drink is believed to have begun. In the first stages, it is aged in oak barrels, fortified and left to mature either in a barrel or in a bottle. Madeira is another from the island of Madeira, from which the wine takes its name. Its distinctive feature is caramel and nutty notes, and - of course - strength.

Marsala

Sicilian wine similar to Madeira. It has been produced since the 18th century in Sicily. Compared to Madeira, it has a higher amount of sugar.

Crimean fortified wines

Massandra products are also appreciated by true lovers of fortified wines. These include: red and white port, black, white and pink muscatel, Cahors. Port wine has more alcohol (17%) but less sugar (6). Muscat has a traditional ratio (16/16). These wines are classified as fortified dessert and fortified strong wines (according to the Soviet classification).

How to make fortified wine?

This unique and beloved drink can be made with your own hands. It will differ from table dry or semi-dry in its strength, which gives the drink originality and new tastes.

So, at the first stage, we prepare grape wine using classical technology - using the process of natural fermentation and water seal. There are a lot of recipes for such wine, with all sorts of variations, so we won’t repeat ourselves and move straight to the second stage.

At the second stage, it is necessary to fix the prepared food - add a degree to it. This can be done in several ways.

First way

Strength is added with sugar (20 grams per liter of not yet completely fermented juice to increase the strength by one degree). The sugar is mixed and the wort is placed under a water seal for further fermentation. After two weeks, the wine is drained through a filter and put into the basement to ripen. Afterwards it is poured into bottles and sealed.

Second way

And the most common! Ethyl alcohol (preferably cognac) is poured into the strained wort - up to approximately 20% of the volume of wine. After adding alcohol, the bacteria die and the wine stops fermenting. It is strained and taken to the basement for clarification (a couple of weeks). Then they are poured into bottles and sealed. Store in a horizontal position, turning occasionally to prevent the cork from drying out. This way you can make fortified wines at home.

Not necessary. Fortified wine is a wine into which strong alcohol - alcohol or brandy - is added at different stages of fermentation. “Strong wine” is a term from the Soviet classification; it was used to designate both fortified wines themselves and those wines that acquire a high degree - up to 17% - directly during fermentation.

I thought that fortified wine is not made at home, only in wineries...

Indeed, fastening has been used in world winemaking practice, probably since the first distillate was obtained. Since time immemorial, they have been fortifying, for example, port wine, Cahors (by the way, we have an article about that), sherry. But home winemakers have been using this technology for a long time and widely, especially for unstable wines made from raw materials that are not ideal in composition, which contain few acids, tannins, tannins, which ensure the safety of the drink, for example, from cherries, currants, etc. You can't do without fastening if you make wine without a basement or cellar with a stable low temperature, or if you plan to age your homemade wines for several years.

So why bother fortifying homemade wine? I do not understand.

• Interrupt fermentation early to preserve the taste of the wort and its natural sweetness without adding sugars.
• Speed ​​up the lightening process indoors so as not to mess around with. The fortification kills the remaining yeast, it precipitates and the wine becomes lighter.
• Prevent re-fermentation. For example, you received completely dry. But I would like the drink to be sweeter. In this case, you simply add sugar or fructose to it, while simultaneously increasing the strength so that the remaining yeast in the wine does not return to the meal, having received fresh food.
• Extend the shelf life of wine and prevent disease. Alcohol is an excellent antiseptic. Homemade fortified wines are almost not susceptible to disease, they do not turn sour or mold, and, unlike dry wines, can be stored for many years.

So, is fastening the only way to interrupt fermentation?

Of course not. There are other methods, but each of them has disadvantages. For example, freezing can increase the strength of the drink and kill the yeast at the same time. But this method requires a large, large freezer and a lot of labor, and also, when using it, a lot of wine is lost. During wine production, wines are sometimes pasteurized and sealed in a vacuum. Everything is clear here - the taste deteriorates, tannins evaporate, but I personally don’t know how to create a vacuum at home. Another way is to preserve wine with sulfur dioxide; Signor Gudimov recently read about the pros and cons of this method. So adding alcohol is just one way to fix homemade wine. But it is definitely the most affordable, simple, 100% environmentally friendly and suitable for home use.

Yeah, I see. And to what degree should I fasten it?

Wine is fortified to kill the yeast it contains. Therefore, the minimum degree depends on what yeast the wine was fermented with. Wild yeast has an alcohol tolerance of 14-15%. Store-bought wines vary, usually up to 16, but some can live with a wort alcohol content of 17, 18 or more degrees. I hope no one would think of using alcohol or bread yeast to make wine. In short, if you put the wine “self-fermented” or with raspberry or raisin sourdough, you should reach the degree level to 16-17. If you bought CHKD - at least until 17-18.

Stop. How can I find out how many degrees there are in my homemade wine?

This is where the fun begins. Of course, you can use a good wine meter, but it is only suitable for grape wines, and besides, for measurements the wine must already be completely clarified and dry. The second method, the most reliable, in my opinion, is measuring density using a refractometer. We measure the density of the wort at the beginning of fermentation, then before fermentation (here you need an AC-3 type hydrometer, since a refractometer will show incorrect data due to the fermented alcohol), subtract the difference and calculate the degree using a special table that should be included with the measuring device. Another option is to calculate the degree yourself, using winemaking tables for the fruit from which you make wine (they can be found on the Internet or on our website, in the relevant articles).

There is another interesting method - it is very labor-intensive and expensive, but very interesting, so I will tell you about it. We take part of the wine we receive and distill it to dryness without dividing it into fractions. We measure the temperature with a regular alcohol meter. For example, from 20 liters of wine we got 5 liters of 40-degree moonshine, which is equivalent to 2000 ml of absolute alcohol. That is, one liter of wine contained 100 grams of alcohol, which corresponds to a strength of 10°. You can fix the wine with the same distillate, just distill it fractionally again.

In short, there are no absolute methods for finding out how many degrees are in your homemade wine. From experience I can say that fruit wines made with wild yeast rarely ferment at more than 9-10°. You will have to rely on your own taste and use trial and error - fix the wine and wait. If it has fermented, fix it again. And so on until the result.

Update (from 10.2019). There is a very simple way to approximately determine the amount of alcohol of a given strength (we will determine the current strength of the wine material based on hydrometer readings at the beginning of fermentation and at the current moment) required for fortifying homemade wines. To do this, use the formula:

A= alcohol content of fortifying spirits

B= alcohol content in the wine material to be fortified

C= desired alcohol content of the drink

D/E= required amount of alcohol for fixing

For example, we have 20 liters of wine material with an alcohol content of 11%; for fortification we will use fruit brandy with an alcohol content of 80%. Goal: get a wine with an alcohol content of 17%. Then:

A = 80; B = 11 1 ; C = 17; D = 6; E=63

D/E = 6/63 = 0.095238*20 l of wine material = 1.90 l of fruit brandy

1 – to calculate the alcohol content of wine material (B): calculate the potential alcohol (PA) before fermentation and the PA with the current gravity. The resulting difference between these PAs will be the approximate strength of the wine material at the moment. To calculate PA, use the formula:

PA = (0.6* o Bx)-1

For example, the initial density was 28 o Bx, now it is 11 o Bx. Then:

Initial PA = (0.6*28)-1=15.8%

Current PA = (0.6*11)-1=5.6%

Approximate current strength of wine material: 10.2%

Hmm, okay... What alcohol should I choose for fixing?

Most often this is done with available alcohol - rectified alcohol or vodka, but this method, of course, is far from the best. A low-quality “breech” will be felt in the wine for a long time, spoiling all the pleasure of drinking it. The best option is brandy from the fruit from which the wine itself is made, for example, for grape – chacha, for apple – Calvados, for raspberry – . This is, of course, cool, but economically it is not entirely justified. In principle, you can use any fruit moonshine that you don’t mind, but it will still impart some, possibly unpleasant, nuances of taste to the drink.

How to fix wine at home if you don’t make brandy and have nowhere to get it? There is nothing left - use alcohol, only very good one. You can do this - place the cake remaining after receiving the wort in a jar and fill it with alcohol. Leave until the wine ferments, then drain and filter. Such liqueurs, by the way, are very good in themselves, and are also quite suitable for garnishing wines.

What, just plop some strong booze into the wort?

No, why be brutal! The wine is fortified like this: part of the wort (10-20 percent) is poured into a separate container and alcohol is diluted in it, designed for the entire volume of wine. Let it rest for several hours, and then add it to the drink itself. This way you can set the wine without shocking it.

At what stage of fermentation is it best to do this?

It’s clear how to make fortified wine from grapes. And when is the best time to do this is the question. Fermentation is interrupted almost from the very beginning, for example, when preparing port, strong alcohol is added to the wort already on the 2-3rd day. Early interruption of fermentation allows maximum preservation of the taste and aromatics of the grapes, as well as the natural sugars contained in the berries. Only in this case you really need a lot of alcohol, and its quality will critically affect the taste of the final drink - in short, you can’t get by with sugar moonshine, you need at least excellent chacha.

The optimal period for fixing the wine is after the end of vigorous fermentation, when the yeast has already gobbled up all the sugar. But in this case, the drink will have to be sweetened artificially. This method will allow the wine to clarify much faster, reduce the requirements for secondary fermentation conditions - it can be stored at room temperature, and will allow the wine to be bottled earlier, put on a shelf and forgotten about it for at least a few years, without worrying that it will spoil due to improper storage .

What to do next? Can I drink it right away?

Of course not. On the contrary, fortified wines take longer to mature than dry wines - they need time to “make friends” with strong alcohol - so before making fortified wine at home, make sure you have enough time and patience. To begin with, after fixing, the drink needs to be left in a large container filled to at least 95%, preferably in a cool place. In young fortified wine, sediment will actively form; it must be removed by decanting, otherwise the taste will later become bitter. As soon as there is no more cloudiness in the jar, the wine can be bottled. It will be possible to start tasting no earlier than six months later, preferably a year and a half after bottling.

Wines are produced by fermenting the juices (pulp) of fruits and berries. To produce homemade yeast, you need pure (wine) or wild yeast and sugar, which as a result of fermentation is converted into wine alcohol (ethanol C2H5OH). Using the traditional method, you can get a light wine with an alcohol content of less than 14%.

Fortified wines

Sweet (dessert) wine products contain free (unfermented) sugar and therefore sweet drinks with a low alcohol content are not stable enough and can deteriorate during storage.

Sweet wines are strengthened by adding food alcohol or high-quality vodka. Such wines are called fortified.

The addition of alcohol eliminates the fermentation process, preserving the required amount of free sugar in the drink. To obtain some types of sweet dessert drinks (tokaj, sherry, muscat, vermouth, port), not only alcohol is added to the wine, but also sugar, various alcohol tinctures (for example, on grape skins of muscat grape varieties), aromatic components that are obtained from medicinal plants and plants with a pleasant smell.

Wines containing from 14 to 20 percent alcohol are considered fortified. Such wines can contain sugar from 5 to 16%; the acidity of such drinks is low: in the range of 0.6 - 0.8%.

Wine alcoholization methods

The technologies for preparing fortified drinks are quite simple, so you can fortify wine at home. Almost every home winemaking recipe suggests the possibility of making fortified wine based on young wine. You can choose a recipe for quick wines that are prepared with the addition of vodka or cognac, but they should not be confused with grape infusions with vodka.

Alcohol:

• juices (pulp);
• wort (before the start of fermentation or during active fermentation);
• finished products.

For alcoholizing wine, good vodka or pure alcohol is suitable (grape alcohol is an excellent choice). They are added in the required proportion.

Alcoholization of juice (pulp) and fermenting wort can create certain difficulties, so at home they often fortify ready-made young wine. This method is used to produce, for example, aromatic vermouths with medicinal herbs.

When alcoholizing juice or an incompletely fermented wine stock, the amount of alcohol for fixing is greater than when fixing finished wine, but there is a saving in sugar. This method is used to obtain port wine.

Portion calculation

When fixing wine material, it is important to correctly calculate how much alcohol or vodka should be added to obtain a drink of the required strength.

To calculate an additional portion of alcohol, the following data is used: if you add 2% vodka or 1% alcohol to wine, the strength of which is 10 degrees, the strength of the drink will increase by 1 degree.

Let's assume that there are 15 liters of sweet strawberry wine with a strength of 10 degrees (determined by a special device - an alcohol meter). The task is to increase the strength of the drink to 14° (add 4 degrees). Vodka is used to fix it. Therefore: (15 x 2 x 4)/100= 120 /100 = 1.2 l.

Let’s say we increase the strength of the same wine by 6 degrees. We calculate:
(15 x 2 x 6)/100= 180/100 = 1.8 liters of vodka.
Using a similar formula, calculate how much alcohol is needed to fix the wine.

The calculated portion of alcohol is added to the wine and mixed well. For vodka/alcohol to completely combine with the wine liquid (assimilation process), at least five days must pass.

After adding vodka, the wine liquid, as a rule, becomes cloudy, and sediment falls to the bottom of the container. Fortified wine is kept in a tightly closed marinade for 15 to 20 days. After aging, it is necessary to carefully remove the liquid from the sediment. Filter, bottle, seal tightly.

There is no need to pasteurize fortified wines to increase shelf life. They are perfectly preserved for many years under any storage conditions. Alcohol prevents the development of microorganisms (yeast). Long-term storage is guaranteed for drinks with an alcohol content of more than 17 percent.

Fortified cherry wine

The cherry wine recipe is very popular among amateur winemakers. Wine, liqueurs, and liqueurs are made from cherries. Homemade cherry wine is a beautiful, tasty, aromatic drink. To store it for a long time, alcoholization of the wine product is used.

To get something sweet. Cherry juice (wine preparation) is obtained from juicy ripe fruits.

Cherry pits contain a lot of tannins, so to make wine at home, only the pulp of the fruit or freshly squeezed juice is used. Fans of the tart taste and slight smell of cherry pits can crush 10–15 pits and add them at the alcoholization stage.

Making wine requires a special approach to water. It is better to give preference to spring or bottled. Wine yeast does not ferment well in tap water with a high content of chlorine and all kinds of salts, as well as in boiled water. Distilled water is not suitable for wine production.

This recipe is for 10 liters of cherry must. To prepare a homemade fortified drink you will need:

• cherry juice - 7 l;
• water - 1.6 l;
• raisins - 70 g (or wine starter);
• sugar - 2.4 kg;
• vodka - 1 l.

1. Juice, water, some 1.6 kg of sugar, and unwashed raisins (or starter) are poured into the fermentation container. If the raisins are of high quality, then after three to four days the mixture should ferment.
2. Fermentation will last from 10 to 12 days.
3. At this stage, alcoholization is carried out: vodka is added to the wort (and cherry pits, if desired).
4. Soak the wine preparation for 5 days. Filter, add the remaining sugar (0.8 kg). Stir. Pour fortified wine into bottles and seal tightly.

The recipe for cooking is similar, there is a slight difference in the amount of water and juice. For 10 liters of wort you will need 6 liters of raspberry juice, 2.6 liters of high-quality water.

The result is a fortified wine of a beautiful raspberry color, with a pleasant aroma of fresh berries.

Fortified grape wine with herbs (vermouth).

Vermouths are fortified drinks with the tart aroma of herbs and the bitter taste of wormwood. These wines are served as an aperitif to stimulate the appetite, they are used to prepare alcoholic cocktails, and added to teas and coffee.

To make vermouth of a suitable color, choose the appropriate wine (red, rose, white). Excellent vermouths are made from grape wine.

Blended vermouths are also popular. For example, one part to four parts produces a beautiful red vermouth of very high quality.
An aromatic herbal tincture is an essential component of vermouth. It is prepared about a week before the wine is alcoholized. You need to choose a recipe for the tincture, because... there are many options here.
Let's use a collection that is traditional:

• vodka - 250 ml (alcohol - 100 ml);
• wormwood - 3 g;
• yarrow officinalis - 4 g;
• cinnamon (sticks, bark) - 3 g;
• mint - 3 g;
• cardamom (boxes) - 2 g;
• saffron - 1 g;
• nutmeg - 2 g.

If you don’t like any component, you can discard it or choose a different tincture recipe for such wine.

1. Place all herbal ingredients in a container and fill them with vodka or alcohol. Shake the mixture daily.
2. Before adding the tincture to the container with the finished wine, taste it for bitterness so that the vermouth is not overly bitter. This is important because The bitterness of wormwood depends on many factors (its variety, storage, and even the conditions in which it grew). Instead of wormwood, you can use tarragon (in the same amount).
3. For a liter of grape preparation you will need 50 ml of alcohol tincture or 120 ml of vodka. You also need to add sugar (100 g, the amount of sugar can be varied depending on the taste of the product). Stir well.
4. Now you can pour the vermouth into a clean container. Pour liquid to the middle of the neck. For the drink to infuse and acquire its special taste and smell, you will have to wait three weeks. Properly prepared vermouth can be stored for a very long time.

You can change the recipe by choosing your own herbal composition (important: wormwood or tarragon must be included in the recipe!) and make your own signature vermouth.

Making drinks at home allows you to use a variety of raw materials. During the fermentation process, many beneficial substances are released. But you need to know how to fortify wine at home, why it is done and what methods can be used. Basically, this technology allows you to effectively stop the further fermentation process, as a result of which the fermentation and decomposition of substances stops. Before fortifying homemade wine, you should make sure that it has reached a certain alcohol concentration. This article talks about how to fortify homemade wine with vodka and alcohol: the entire technology is described in detail and an example is shown of calculating the required alcohol concentration in the drink after the procedure. Before fortifying homemade wine with alcohol, you should recalculate its concentration based on the standard alcohol content in 1 liter of vodka.

How to properly fix young homemade wine

Fortified wines are those whose strength is enhanced by the addition of a strong alcoholic beverage. The alcohol content of fortified wines is 15–22 degrees. Classic fortified wines are ports and sherries. It is impossible to obtain stronger wine only by fermenting the wort, since increasing the amount of alcohol in the wort to 12–13% automatically turns off the work of the yeast and further fermentation stops. The technology for preparing strong wines uses alcoholization, i.e. adding strong alcohol or purified vodka to juice, fermenting wort or young wine. As a result, fermentation stops and the required amount of sugars is retained in the wine, and a significant amount of alcohol is introduced. To obtain sweet dessert wines, sugar and aromatic substances from plants are often added to young wine. How to fix young wine is described in detail further on the page.

Each method of making strong wine has its own characteristics. So, for example, when fermenting wort is alcoholized on pulp, the juice from the fruits is not squeezed out, the fruits are crushed, sugar syrup is added to them and they are placed for fermentation in a closed container in a warm room with a temperature no higher than 26 °C. After about 3–5 days, when the sugar concentration in the wort drops to 6–9%, the wort is pressed, 90% alcohol is added and left to infuse for 1 week. After this, the wine is filtered, clarified, poured into closed containers and left to mature for 2 years (more is possible) at a temperature of about 15 °C. During the ripening process, the wine must be ventilated several times, pouring it from one container to another. If the timing and maturation technology are fully followed, the result is a drink with an excellent complex taste and delicate aroma.

Before properly fixing homemade wine, you need to understand that it is very difficult to determine the amount of alcohol added, so the calculation is made approximately. It’s nice to think that if a wine has a strength of 10% vol. add 1% alcohol (or 2% vodka), its strength will increase by 1% vol.

For example, the strength of wine (20 l) must be increased from 10 to 15% vol., that is, by 5% vol. If you use alcohol for these purposes, you will need it: (20 x 1 x 5): 100 = 1 liter. If you take vodka instead of alcohol, then its quantity will be: (20 x 2 x 5): 100 = 2 liters.

After vodka is added to the fermented wine, it is mixed well and left for 4-5 days so that the liquids assimilate with each other.

Wine mixed with vodka becomes cloudy and sediment forms in it again. That is why it is first aged (2-3 weeks), and then removed from the sediment, filtered and only then bottled and capped.

How to fix homemade wine with sugar

Each category of wine corresponds to a certain content of alcohol, sugar and acids. So, 100 g of rose table wine contains 8-11 vol. % alcohol, 1–1.5 g sugar, 0.7–0.8 g acid; for dessert wine these figures are 15, 15–20 and 1.2, respectively; for liqueur - 16, 40 and 1.5. Before fortifying homemade wine with sugar, you should remember:

• 20 g of sugar per 1 liter of wort increases the strength of the wine by 1°;
• excess sugar inhibits the fermentation process;
• every kilogram of sugar when dissolved increases the volume by 600 ml;
• when preparing dry wines, sugar is dissolved in water and added in one go; in dessert wines, sugar is added fractionally on the 1st, 4th, 7th, 10th day, dissolving it in a small amount of fermenting wine.

The stages of preparing classic port wine consist of the fermentation of grape must. This produces grape wine with a strength of 6–9 degrees. Then 77 degree cognac alcohol is added to this wine in a ratio of 1:4 and poured into an oak barrel. They last from 2 to 30 years. It is believed that port wine is best aged in barrels on the sea coast.

Sherries are prepared in the same way. The grapes are crushed, pressed, and the squeezed juice is fermented. As soon as fermentation is over, grape alcohol is added to the wine, poured into an oak barrel, leaving air space in it, and aged for at least 1 year. The wine, thanks to the remaining air, is partially oxidized and acquires a special bouquet.

How to fortify homemade cherry wine with alcohol

Components:

• Cherry fruit
• Sugar - at the rate of 100 g per 1 liter of juice
• Yeast starter - at the rate of 0.3 liters per 1 liter of juice
• Alcohol 96% – at the rate of 0.3–0.35 l per 1 l of wine

Take sweet cherries, remove the pits, mash the berries and squeeze out the juice. Then pour the juice into a glass bottle, add a little boiled water, sugar and yeast starter and place in a warm place for 5-6 days for fermentation. Drain the fermented juice from the sediment, pour it into a clean bottle, add alcohol to it and let it sit for about 6 months.

Before fortifying homemade cherry wine with alcohol, the drink must be drained from the sediment, poured into bottles, then sealed and stored in a cool place.

This wine is very beautiful and pleasant to the taste.

How to fix cherry wine with vodka

Components:

• Cherry berries
• Sugar - at the rate of 0.4 kg per 1 liter of juice
• Vodka - at the rate of 1 liter per 5 liters of juice
• Ground cinnamon – 2–3 g per 5 liters of juice

To prepare this wine, you need to take dark, sweet berries, remove the seeds, mash the cherries and let them sit for 1 day, then squeeze out the juice. Add sugar to the juice, stir, pour in vodka, put in a canvas bag with cinnamon and keep in a cool and dark place for about 1 week. Before fixing the cherry wine with vodka, pour the drink into bottles, then cap it and keep it in a cool place for several more months.

How to fix apple wine with alcohol or vodka

Dried apples of sweet and sour varieties are placed in a wooden or enamel bowl, filled with hot water (80–90 °C) and left for 24 hours. For 1 kg of apples – 800 ml of water. The apples are then pressed, sugar syrup and yeast are added, and then left to ferment.

After 5–6 days, the wort is alcoholized by adding 500 ml of 70° alcohol per 1 liter of wort, and allowed to brew for 3–5 days. The wine is then carefully removed from the sediment and left to mature, which lasts 6–8 months, in a tightly closed vessel. At the same time, pour it 1-2 times. Before fixing apple wine with alcohol or vodka, it is removed from the sediment again, then stored in a cool place.

How to fortify apple wine at home

Components:

• Apple juice
• rowan juice
• sugar
• yeast
• vodka

This wine is made from natural apple juice. Good wine is obtained if you add 1 liter of rowan juice to 9 liters of apple juice. Sugar and starter are added to the wort and set for fermentation. On the 11th day its strength reaches 10°. Before fortifying apple wine at home, it is alcoholized (add 1 liter of vodka per 10 liters of wine). The wine will be golden in color, refreshing, sweet and sour, with the aroma of fresh apples.

How to fix raspberry wine

Components:

• 5 kg raspberries
• 2 liters of water
• sugar
• yeast starter
• alcohol

Squeeze raspberry juice, add 1 liter of water and 300 g of sugar. Add 1 liter of water to the pomace, leave for 5–6 hours, squeeze again. Mix the resulting juice with the previously squeezed juice, add yeast starter, and leave for fermentation. After 7-10 days, strain through filter paper and thick cloth, add sugar (150 g per 1 liter of liquid) and continue fermentation. After fermentation is complete, before fixing the raspberry wine (500 ml per 10 liters of wine), add sugar if desired, then bottle and seal.

How to fix homemade wine

Fixing wine is used to protect it from unwanted changes that often appear after bottling. Before fixing homemade wine, you need to know that the following methods are most often used:

• adding chemical preservatives;
• increase in alcohol content;
• pasteurization.

Adding chemical preservatives.

Sulfurous acid is commonly used as a preservative in winemaking. It effectively acts on mold, yeast, and acetic fermentation bacteria. Another important property of sulfurous acid is its ability to decolorize dyes and protect wine from enzymatic darkening. Therefore, this method is used to fix white table wines with a strength of 12–14°.

An appropriate amount of sulfurous acid is added to a vessel with wine prepared for bottling, most often in the form of potassium pyrosulfite, available in 10 g tablets. For 10 liters of wine you need to add 2-3 g of potassium pyrosulfite, mix well, then filter the wine and bottle immediately.

Increasing the alcohol content of wine.

Alcohol is a strong preservative, and its content in quantities exceeding 16% guarantees the wine to retain its qualities during long-term storage. This method is used before bottling wine. To increase the strength of wine, add 12 ml of alcohol to each liter of wine. Thus, in order, for example, to increase the strength of 5 liters of wine by 4°, you need to add 48 x 5 = 240 ml of alcohol with a strength of 95° to this amount of wine.

Pasteurization of wine.

This method is the most convenient and widespread not only in industry, but also at home, since it produces the highest quality, non-perishable wine.

Pasteurization involves heating bottled and corked wine to a temperature of 72–75 °C and maintaining it at this temperature for 25–30 minutes, which leads to the destruction of microorganisms.

To avoid too much pressure in the bottle, the wine should not be poured to the top, leaving a free space of 3-4 cm high. Since the heated wine will take up more volume and rise in the bottle, you need to protect the corks from being pushed out by tying them with wire or twine. You can also make special staples, adjusting them to the size of the neck.

After this, the bottles are placed in a cauldron, at the bottom of which a metal or wooden grate is placed. Cold water is poured into the cauldron to cover the bottles, and it is gradually heated. To measure the temperature, a special bottle of water is placed in the boiler, into which a narrow laboratory thermometer is immersed through a hole in the stopper.

After the temperature inside the bottles reaches 72–74 °C, it is maintained for 25–30 minutes, then gradually reduced. The cooled wine bottles are removed, the caps are removed from the caps and sealed with wax or paraffin.

The finished bottles are placed in a dry cellar, preferably in a lying position with the head facing the wall. At a low (10–12 °C) and constant temperature, such wine can be stored for a long time without changes in quality and appearance.