DIY Bucket Wine / Beer / Champaign / Mead

Before leaving to Malawi I began researching how people can make their own wine at home - and I realized the process is extremely easy. In Malawi if you are seen at a bar or buying alcohol people are likely to assume you are indulging far more than you may actually be. This is because people who "take alcohol" here do so with the intention of getting completely drunk. In America its common to have a glass of wine or beer with dinner or even a couple drinks on a Friday night - all taken in moderation - but thats not the case in Malawi. Because of this social opinion surrounding alcohol (and the small wallets us PCV's have) some of us have taken up brewing in our homes as an experiment. It's a very easy process thats safe to try even if you haven't done anything like this before.

Many volunteers here are interested in learning how to make "bucket wine" and have asked me for advice. This post is for you!

^ The pictures in this post are from when I made ginger beer, but the technique can be used for wine, champaign, or mead. The essential ingredients to any brew are water, yeast, and sugar (or honey) - everything else will just make it look/taste better. I'm using red wine yeast I brought from home, but any type of yeast will do. The only difference is how high of an alcohol percent your final product will have; baking yeast cannot survive highly alcoholic environments so your final product will have a much lower alcohol percent (compared to wine yeast which can survive in much more alcoholic environments leaving you with a much stronger drink). Experiments with your own ratios, but a general rule of thumb might be something like 1kg sugar :: 2.5g yeast :: 10L water (for my ginger beer I used 3kg :: 5g :: 15L and it came out very sweet like soda)

^After you have ingredients start to prepare them for boiling - the more surface area your ingredients have the stronger the flavor will be. For the ginger beer I mashed up the fresh ginger into a pulp so that the flavor would be strong, but for softer fruits mashing isn't necessary (but you can do it if you want, it won't hurt anything).

^ In a large pot combine all your ingredients EXCEPT YEAST and boil together for 30 minutes to an hour. I was using charcoal so I couldn't get it to a rolling boil, but if you are able to it's highly recommended because a rolling boil will kill unwanted bacteria that could grow in your wine (I haven't had this problem, but others have). After boiling leave your newly created juice to cool with a cloth placed over the top to prevent insects. For my ginger beer I let it cool for an hour, but since then I have learned it's best to let it sit overnight.

^ Add your juice to the brewing container of your choice; I used a chigubu (plastic jug used for oil). Add your yeast, give it a little shake to wake it up, and apply your seal. A great seal will allow air to escape the jug, but not allow outside air to enter. You can do this by running a hose from the lid into a bottle of water (bubbles will come from the hose, but because it is submerged in water no air can flow back in). If you can't find materials (or just want to find a use for all those Peace Corps condoms) you can just use a condom secured with a hair tie! As the yeast eats the sugar, both alcohol and co2 are released and the condom will inflate! Using a knife poke a very small hole in the end of condom to slowly let air out (as it deflates the plastic will contract and seal the hole, preventing air from entering).

^ From there just sit back at let the yeast eat! After it has finished use a cloth/screen to filter and pour into bottles. If you want a carbonated drink, bottle your brew after 10 days and allow it to continue fermenting in an airtight environment for another week or two (co2 will still be released, but because it can't escape it will mix with the liquid). If you want a flat drink, leave it in the brewing jug until no more co2 is being released (you can tell when the condom doesn't inflate/ bubbles don't come from the tube; depending on which method you used).

All brews (carbonated or flat) should be stored in air-tight containers. An easy DIY sealing method is to put a plastic bag around the opening and screw the cap on over it (be careful not to rip the plastic!). If your wine isn't sealed and becomes exposed to air it will begin the process of turning into vinegar (takes 2 - 4 weeks, and can be a good thing if you want vinegar!). If you made a carbonated drink BE CAREFUL, sometimes the yeast can continue to ferment for longer than you anticipated resulting in the bottle exploding! Throughout the whole process of making wine taste it and see how its doing. It's okay to open your brew bottle once a week and drink a cup (OR ferment a small amount in a smaller jug to sample from).

Fermenting is kind scary for people, but when it comes to making bucket wine don't be afraid! The "worst case scenario" is an upset stomach - you won't die or become seriously ill. If something goes wrong you will see it or smell it before you ingest anything anyway (it will be obvious - a bottle of mine had a hole and I could tell the second I looked at it that mold was growing on top). This can be a fun first lesson in fermentation, and can help you with possible future projects (cheese, sauerkraut, kimchi, kombucha, etc.)

I hope this helps all you future-brewers! I just finished drinking my ginger beer and it turned out delicious! My next batch (raspberry and rosemary with coconut wine) is brewing as I write this - I can't wait to see how it turns out! If you have questions send me a message or leave a comment and I can try to help the best I can!

For your health!