DUNDEE — Joshua Fink knows about the science behind wine and beer making. The 38-year-old and his father, William Falk, own and operate Home Winery Supply , 208 Main St. in Dundee.
History suggests alcoholic beverages date back to the neolithic period, between 7,000 to 9,000 years BC, when people in the Middle East made barley beer and grape wine.
Fink’s great grandfather started the business out of his store, Home Appliance Co.
“He sold paint, vacuums, all kinds of stuff,” Joshua Fink said. “He had a small section of home brewing supplies. My grandfather and his brother turned it into Home Winery Supply in 1963. We sell the grains, the juices, the equipment. We have people come in all the time for instructions and questions. They’ll bring in samples wondering why it did not turn out correctly.”
Today, the business carries ingredients and equipment for home fermentation for making beverages like beer, wine and kombucha, a fermented, sweetened black tea. Their customers are homebrewers, someone who domestically makes wine or brews beer on a small scale for non-commercial purposes.
When it comes to homebrewing, the Dundee shop offers kits for the novice to the advanced.
They’ve been sourcing concentrates from the same companies for 40 years. They buy in bulk and bottle themselves.
Growing up in the business, it only made sense for Fink to one day run the store with his father.
When customers come into the store wanting to make wine, Fink asks two questions — What do you want to make it from? And, what kind of wine do you like to drink?
In the summer, strawberries are a popular choice.
“If you want to make wine from strawberries, you’d crush up the fruit and add ingredients, sugar, water, yeast, etc., then you ferment it and strain it to remove sediments,” he said.
Subscribe Now: For all the latest local developments, breaking news and high school sports content.
He says the most important step in making wine is sanitation and to use the best ingredients.
“You don’t want to use bread yeast, you want to use wine yeast,” Fink said. “Using proper ingredients is important."
Yeast is the ingredient that begins the conversion of sugars into alcohol, also known as fermentation.
On its website, Home Winery Supply offer guides for concentrate setup and fresh fruit.
The concentrate word document offers information on how to determine the amount of sweetness when making wine. Dry wine will require 6 lbs. of sugar while a semi-sweet wine will need 9 lbs. of sugar.
Making wine is a hobby that requires patience and time.
“You’ll want plan on an average of three months before wine is done,” he said. “Wine gets better with age. Dry wines take longer to age. In a sweeter wine, the sugar is covering up the harshness of wine so it will be ready sooner.”
Red wines appear to be the favorite among Fink’s customers.
“As long as the alcohol is above 10%, it will never technically expire or go bad,” he said. “The alcohol level is high enough to preserve it.”
Although the Dundee store has a variety of supplies in stock, Fink will place special orders for customers.
Within the past five years, he said he’s noticed more people in his age group showing an interest in the hobby.
“It definitely goes in trends,” he said. “My grandpa said beer was huge in the '80s and then it died out in the '90s and wine became popular. In the early 2000s, with the explosion of brewpubs, beer became very popular again.”
Fink says he enjoys owning his own business and being in control of how it operates.
“I’m a do-it-yourself person so that’s probably one of the things I like best,” he said. “I also enjoy teaching and answering questions to help people get where they want to be.”
Future plans for Fink and Home Winery Supply include offering classes and instruction videos. When available, information will be posted online.
— Contact reporter Lisa Vidaurri-Bowling at lvidaurribowling@gannett.com .
This article originally appeared on The Monroe News: Looking to brew your own beer or wine? Home Winery Supply caters to homebrewers
Local News
Comments / 0