It is believed that growing grapes in a garden is a difficult task. This opinion applies exclusively to exquisite varieties, while Lydia grapes are unpretentious and give a good harvest. Homemade wine from this variety is highly valued for its excellent taste. No special skills are required to make a sunny drink. Thanks to the material below, it will be easy to do it right at home.
The benefits and harms of Lydia grapes
Various grape varieties are used for making wine: Isabella, Cabernet, Taifi and others. According to the experience of domestic winemakers, Lydia has the necessary qualities for the production of dessert, semi-sweet or fortified homemade wine. There will be no exquisite notes in the drink, as it turns out with a rather pronounced, pungent smell, which, by the way, is liked by many. Homemade wine tastes sweet and sour. Why you should choose this particular variety for winemaking:
- grapes are easy to process bunches;
- well preserved during transportation or storage;
- the grape shell has its own yeast film;
- does not require stimulants for fermentation;
- variety Lydia contains about 19% sugar;
- it turns out natural, tastyalcohol-containing product;
- rosé, dark rosé or red wine by strength 10-15 degrees;
- drinks from this variety are rarely muddy.
Against the background of useful properties, grapes are arousing European winemakers. In many countries, the drink from Lydia is prohibited - this is due to the fact that during the fermentation process methanol is formed. Disputes between doctors and scientists on this issue were divided. Some consider it harmful, while others, on the contrary, note the benefits of homemade nectar.
Features of making grape wine
The ripeness of this variety occurs in mid-autumn. You need to harvest when it is dry, there should be no moisture and dew drops on the berries. In order for the nectar to be of high quality, it is recommended to wait until full maturity, then the berries will be red, juicy and sugary. Immediately before processing, the raw materials for the drink are sorted out, the spoiled and unripe fruits are sorted.
Since Lydia grapes are not large and very juicy, they are often not picked from bunches, they are crushed entirely. Due to the bunches, the wine will be slightly tart. In order for it not to over-acid during fermentation, it is necessary to sweeten it by adding sugar or honey. Fermentation requires a stable temperature of 18-25 C. The fermentation process involves the formation of a sediment, but at the exit the drink will turn out to be transparent. Especially nectar sparkles inside a transparent dish in the light.
Wine containers should be kept in a dark room. The best time to take a wine sample is six months later. It is not recommended to consume a young grape drink - it can harm the body. The settled mixture from this grape has an original raspberry-strawberry aftertaste.
Home cooking recipes
Home-made alcoholic drinks from grapes have always been in demand. Each winemaker makes a different wine to taste - it depends on the place where the grapes are grown, the recipe and technology. Using the options provided below, you can make an excellent quality alcoholic product with an excellent aftertaste at home with your own hands.
Classic homemade wine drink
The recipe provides only two main components:
- grapes - 30 kg;
- sugar - 9 kg.
The main ingredients of the classic recipe allow you to prepare a quality drink at home. You can change the recipe at your discretion, add or reduce the amount of sugar. How much sugar should you add?If you add 5 kg of sugar to this amount of raw materials, you get a dry rose wine. To prepare a dessert drink, you need to take 11-12 kg of sugar.
The raw materials should be sorted out and squeezed out, the resulting juice is fermented. Fermentation time is 10-14 days. After which the pulp is strained, the wine product is poured into containers. Sugar is added so that the drink is not sour, mixed and placed in a dark place for at least 2 months. After this time, you can conduct a trial tasting.
The product will reach full maturity in 5-6 months.
Is it worth washing berries with water to make homemade wine - opinions differ on this issue. Some argue that washing destroys bacteria necessary for fermentation, advocates of sanitation have a different opinion. If the grapes are heavily contaminated, it is better not to tempt fate and rinse with a stream of water.
Dessert wine
To prepare a dessert drink from Lydia, you will need:
- grapes - 8 kg;
- sugar - 2 kg.
Crush the raw materials until juice appears, transfer the resulting mass to a container. Add some of the sugar and ferment. After 2-3 days, the pulp will rise to the top. You will need to carefully drain the resulting juice. Strain if necessary. Lightly sugar the finished mass, cover with gauze, put in a warm place for 2-3 days... A jar of wine is covered with a medical glove or a water seal.
Every 5 days the contents of the jar are sweetened and mixed. After the fermentation process is complete, pour into a clean jar. Leave to ferment for 1-2 months. Strain the finished drink through several layers of gauze. You can taste it after 6 months.
Frozen grapes
Few people know that you can make a grape drink yourself not only from fresh raw materials, but also from frozen ones. It turns out that the base of the wine may contain a frozen product. You can freeze the fruits yourself or harvest after frost. For cooking you will need:
- frozen raw materials - 5 kg;
- sugar - 0.5 kg;
- wine yeast.
Due to the fact that wine fungi die at subzero temperatures, fermentation is stimulated with the help of yeast. The only disadvantage of this method, the juice is viscous, you will need to wait more time for it to settle.
Frozen grapes must be removed from the bunches until they melt.
Next, the raw material is crushed, the juice is poured into a container, where wine yeast is added. Their number depends on the manufacturer's recipe. Place the containers in a warm place, as soon as the yeast begins to ferment, pour out the sugar. This process usually takes 2-3 days. Install a water seal and send to a dark place until fermentation ends for 40-50 days.
Home-made wine from Lydia is considered by many to be a true gourmet drink. Thanks to a useful selection and experience of winemakers, everyone can prepare it, who has a desire. By sampling and subsequent tastings, you can prepare an amazingly tasting wine.