Best Fermenting Conditions

Ideally, a wine needs to ferment at a steady temperature of 18–24°C (65–75°F). What it dislikes most is wild fluctuations of temperature (such as those it might be subjected to on a windowsill), so keep your demijohn (carboy) somewhere steadily warm. Heat pads and straps are available to help if your house doesn’t naturally offer such a location. Direct sunlight is also to be avoided (another minus point for the windowsill), not least because this can strip the drink of its distinctive colour.

The length of time it takes to ferment wine can vary according to ingredients, yeast quality and fermenting conditions. If you think your wine looks sluggish, the first racking often kick-starts it back into active fermentation. As a guide, we find that 3 months should be the minimum you need to keep your wine in a demijohn (carboy) before bottling. However, keeping it in the demijohn for longer is no bad thing (it likes to mature in volume), provided you’ve racked it off from any sediment.