~The Book Of Wonder Encyclopaedia~

• One clean demijohn
• One clean measuring jug
• Airlock
• Bung (with hole for airlock)
• Small glass jar
• Heater (optional)

• Campden tablets
• Citric Acid
• Potassium Sorbate

1. General purpose yeast
2. Yeast nutrient
3. 1 Kilo Sugar
4. 1 Ltr Pure Apple juice(no preservatives)
5. 1 Ltr Grapefruit juice(ditto)
6. ½ Ltr Orange juice(no preservatives)

Method

Prepare a sterilising solution by crushing five campden tablets into a jug with ½ pint of warm water, when these are fully dissolved add two teaspoons of citric acid.

Providing you don't have any breathing disorders you can test the efficiency of this solution by sniffing it. (just a whiff will confirm it is active)

Rinse all the tools and equipment in the solution, this includes the bung and airlock.

Drain off the sterilising solution but don't rinse it off! Rinse the small glass jar in the solution then rinse it well with cold water. (This is for your yeast culture to grow)

Mix one teaspoon of dried yeast to a small amount of warm water in the jar and add the yeast nutrient.

Cover the jar with a clean cloth to exclude airborne bacteria but to allow the yeast to breathe. Now put this to one side for six hours.

Pour the juices into the demijohn, add the sugar and top up to the shoulders with cold water. (leave some space for the fermentation froth)

Insert the bung and airlock, put some of the sterilising fluid in the airlock to seal it.

Pour the yeast into the demijohn when it is ready and leave until fermentation has ceased, (about 18 days, roughly)

After the fermentation period is over - that is when the bubbles coming through the airlock are less than one per minute - add a campden tablet to the wine and shake the demijohn, leave this to settle out and when clear siphon the wine off the sediment, you can at this stage put it straight into bottles or into another demijohn (recomended) if you use another demijohn be sure to top it up to just below the neck with clean cold water, taste wine, this should be quite dry, if you require it to be a little sweeter you can add artificial sweetener or sugar, however if you add sugar also add some potassium sorbate and two campden tablets to kill the yeast.

If you have used a second demijohn this wine will be ready in about two months, siphon off the wine and bottle it, leave for another two weeks and you will have your first batch of aperetif wine! Contact Delia if you want to know what to eat with this wine!

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