When most of us think of wine, we think of grapes. And it’s true that most wine is made from grapes, but not all. In fact, if you want to make your own wine, you can go right ahead with just about any kind of fruit you have on hand. How about some apple or peach wine? Got some raspberries or strawberries left over from your most recent crop? (And yes, you can even “go bananas” with your wine if you want to.)

Now is the time to get creative

There are lots of recipes on the Internet when it comes to winemaking, and you can use just about any type of fruit you have. Get creative and mix-and-match, too. For example, apple raspberry wine sounds good, doesn’t it?

Some things to keep in mind

Good fruit equals good wine

Start with fresh, whole, ripe fruit that’s nice and sweet for the best tasting wine. Cut bruised parts out of apples and don’t use anything that’s gone south or is otherwise substandard.

Rinse and repeat

Make sure the fruit you use has been thoroughly rinsed so that it’s nice and clean and you’re not going to get unwanted contaminants in your wine.

Usually, you dilute

Except for wines made directly from juices (like apple, for example), you’ll want to dilute your fruit mash with water so that the flavor is not too strong.

More fruit equals a heavier wine, less fruit equals a lighter wine

It’ll take some experimentation, but you can opt for a really heavy, sweet wine or a lighter, drier wine. A very rough estimate for a good balanced wine is about 3 pounds of fruit for every gallon of wine. Again, the type of fruit and the richness you want will change this amount so that this is only an estimate.

Use a winemaking hydrometer

The winemaking hydrometer will tell you how much sugar your resulting fruit mash has. When you begin the fermentation process, read the hydrometer’s “potential alcohol” scale so that you know whether or not you need to add more.

What sugar should you use?

In most cases, wine is probably going to need some sugar added to it unless the fruit is very sweet or you like a very dry wine. Different types of sugar (such as cane sugar, honey, fructose, etc.) have different characteristics, and each will add a different “flavor” to your wine. If you like, start out with plain white table sugar and then experiment with other types once you get a knack for winemaking itself.

A little “acid” sweetness is good

Wine doesn’t just get its properties from being sweet; it also gets its unique flavor from being acidic. The type of fruit you use will change the acidity in the wine, so use a winemaking tartration kit to make sure you’ve got the proper acidity. If you want your wine to be more acidic, you can use malic, tartaric, or citric acids to balance this. You can also buy these as a blend specifically for wine making.

Onto fermentation

Fermentation is absolutely necessary to make wine; for this, you’ll need winemaking yeast and nutrients necessary to the process. Again, you can find this information on the Internet.

Finally, “your own brand”

Once the fermentation process is complete, you can bottle your wine as is, or you can make adjustments to it by adding flavor or body enhancements, a little more sugar, a little more acid, et cetera. It’s a myth that you can’t change the flavor of your wine once the fermentation process is complete. In fact, this could be one of the more interesting parts of the process.

Getting the hang of it

Don’t be discouraged if your first batch of wine doesn’t turn out great. In fact, few “first batches” of anything do. However, as you get used to the process, you may just find that store-bought wines taste, well, boring. After all, you can make any type of wine you want. Why would you just stick with bland, boring grape wine when you can do so much more?

Even though people may not see the point in this, different wines will bring out the various flavor components when paired together properly. The general rule that is typically followed when pairing wine to chocolates is that the wine should be as sweet as, if not sweeter, then the chocolate that is going along with it.

By not making sure that you have a wine that is sweet enough you could end up with a taste that is bitter or even sour. For something that a person would expect to be sweet, this is not the outcome that you want to have happen. Although there are some general rules that people will follow, you can experiment all you want until you find the combination that you like the most.

If you are looking for a wine that typically goes well with dark chocolate then you will need to find a wine that gives its own robust flavor. A hint of chocolate flavor in the wine would not hurt. A great tasting combination is said to be between dark chocolate of a nice Cabs or Zinfandels.

If your dark chocolate is around the 55% cocoa mark then you will want to go a different route. A nice Pinot Noir or Merlot will go well with this type of dark chocolate. A Tawny or Vintage Port is also a nice match for a chocolate truffle. In the end it is all about what you personal like so give it a try and see what you think.

For the milk chocolate you may want to pair it with a light Merlot. Mild milk chocolates do well with Muscats, Rieslings, or other dessert wines. If you are going all out and have some strawberries that are dipped in milk chocolate then consider pairing that with Champagne or a sparkling wine. If none of that meets your expectations then try the classic Ruby Port, as that will be sure to satisfy.

Even though white chocolate is used less often for wine pairing, it can still be worked with and end with excellent tasting results. Since this flavor of chocolate is more on the mellow and buttery side of the flavor charts, it works well with a decent Sherry or an Orange Muscat. If you like contrast then you may want to get a little wild and pair the white chocolate with a Zinfandel.

Of course, when all else fails you can take the do it yourself route. Grab yourself a handful of different types of chocolate and set out to buy a variety of wines. Have yourself a little chocolate and wine tasting party and see what tickles your fancy the most. You may be surprised to find which pairs you like the most.