We've just bottled 24 bottles of our very first homemade wine (hic!)

[princesscc]

Trouble is, you have to suck the tube to get the wine flowing first and its very strong stuff! Its gonna be a good night, dd gone to nannies for the night and me & dh are going out for dinner with neighbours & friends who also have kid free night!

lucky you!!!! sounds like a good start to a fab night am feeling quite thirsty now myself

what sort did you make? we make lots of wine and some liquers/spirts too

It's great isn't it - saves you so much money (especially if your dp has gps that give you sackloads of grapes from their garden).

It was just grapes that were growing in a friends garden! We looked on the web to see if we could find a name, but in the end we made one using an un-named varity recipe. It's sooo clear! Everyone has had a hand it in. Friends provided the grapes, DD & the kids nextdoor crushed them all, dh did the brewing and I did the most important job - drinking lots of white wine, so we could save the bottles!! Can't wait to try something else. Any ideas most welcome!

It seems to be cheap yes, I managed to buy 10 demijohns at a boot fair for a fiver!

There are some really good wine recipe books out there. I think dp has a really old one that is BCA Turner - Home Wine Making and Brewing (its a Boots one) that he thinks is fantastic, but probably out of print. The other one he uses is Paul and Ann Turner, Traditional Home Winemaking. He says its brilliant for technique - clear details and lots of illustrative photos.

Dp usually (if no grapes on offer) goes to lidl and sees what fruit is going cheap and decides that way.

Dp has been experimenting for a few years with different recipes (he writes every tiny detail down).

He made some mead for christmas this year, and some cider that was fantastic (though very alcoholic).

charity shops are brilliant for equipment as well.

Boots don't do any winemaking stuff any more apparently.

Wilkinsons did a 25 gallon plastic fermentation bin, that dp found brilliant for under a tenner. Dp says they do everything you should need now as well and cheaply (equipment and yeast/chemical stuff).

lloyds chemists used to sell bits and pieces as well, dont know if they still do tho

i'd forgotten, but made some citrus herb liquer one year, bottled it and gave it as christmas presents. went down very well. my il's left theirs to 'mature' a year or two, and it was gorgeous,... absolutely lethal, but lovely

My friend makes Rhubarb wine and it is fab!

we have an allotment so whatever we have loads of gets used, last year we made courgette wine and beetroot too.
my fav is strawberry.

Not sure about courgette or beetroot but strawberry sounds nice mmmmmmm!