Home made wine and stockists of equipment

angela110660

Got a bargain at car boot last Sunday - Boots wine kit for £1 ! Couple of small bits missing so went to Boots today and my branch does not stock kits or spares any more.
Any suggestions please as to who does stock equipment such as demi john corks etc quite cheaply and also any good recipe books to look for.
Many thanks. ???

WeirdoMagnet

Hi Angela,

Your right - Boots no longer do home brewing kit.

You'll have to search for your local home brew shop try searching for 'brewing' for your area on https://www.yell.co.uk or http://www.youngshomebrew.co.uk for tips and an e-mail link for local stockists.

Happy brewing (and drinking)! ;D

blondierowe_2

Hi Angela,

Wilkinson's used to do Home Brewing kit but haven't been in there for awhile so not sure if they still do.

System

Hi,

https://www.whitbyhomebew.co.uk, is another good one.

I have just ordered a starter kit from them, and they do all the little bits, like bungs, too.

Do a websearch for the wine receipe you are looking for, and loads of odd little sites come up. I also bought a homemade wine and beer recipie book off Ebay, so might be worth having a look on there too.

Never made home made wine before but that elderflower tree in the garden is just going to waste!!

;D Have fun!

System

Whoops!
that should have been, "brew" not "bew" in that website address...!
Sorry! ::)

angela110660

Thanks for all the advice folks and I shall now follow it up and hopefully be on my way very soon.

Sarahsaver

Wilkinson's still does homebrew equipment.
The best place near me is a charity shop that always seems to have demijohns in it. The BEST homebrew i ever made was a kit to make peach schnapps, but that was from Boots who now dont do home brew
I have made beer from one of those bags you just hang up, from https://www.hawkin.com and wine from a variety of methods, including a wine box kit, using yeast and using natural methods - that is relying on the yeast present on the skin of the fruit used.
Ive got a really old home brewing book thats out of print, got it in a second hand shop.
So, charity shops are worth scouring, and ask any older friends or relatives, especially if you know anyone in rural areas - they seem to be able to make wine from anything, including peapods!

Gotabiscuit

The following site is also very good - they even do filters for the old Boots kit.

http://www.homewinemaking.co.uk/

ambersmita

https://www.jphomebrew.com is another good site and they will also give freindly advice over the phone - they also have excellent recipies on the site - I have just made my first Organic Elderflower Cordial - I love homebrewing I am also in the middle of my first proper kit - 8 litres of Irish Cream "Baileys Styleee" nice!!!! Home brew is great I am a home brew newbie and got most of my kit from car boots -you' ll be surprised what you can find. What I want to know is when is there going to be a TV series to give home brew the kind of makeover that cooking and DIY have had - I can imagine it right now - Lawrence LL Bowen slashed enjoying a homemade chablis with Ainsley Harriott and Delia smith!! Homebrew is no longer about beards and tanktops its about good old fashioned cheap alcohol and long may it rule!!!

Ted_Hutchinson

http://www.jphomebrew.co.uk/

Plumpud_3

My Husband has made a lot of homebrew over the years. Beer, cider, wine and his ever popular non-alcoholic elderflower champagne. Using kits and from scratch.

I've bought loads of books from charity shops. Because they are all quite old, I've never paid more than 50p for one.

Charity shops and car boot sales are good places to pick up items like demi-johns.

For supplies, we use a local shop B & J Homebrew. They don't have a website or do mail order unfortunately, but if you are ever in the area, they are well worth a visit. http://www.d2engineering.co.uk/GreatBritishBeer/homebrewDetails.asp?Id=59

It is run by a retired chap, who has won literally hundreds of awards for homebrewing (they are on a wall in the shop). There is nothing he doesn't know. The shop is run more like a hobby than a business. If you do fancy giving it a visit, ring them first to check opening times as they are pretty restricted and seem to change quite often.

Incidentally, the very large Boots in Cheltenham sells homebrew kits, but there is a very small choice.