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Home Winemaking Step By Step (Second Edition)
by Jon Iverson
Stonemark Publishing Company, 1998
$19.95 CA / $15.95 US

reviewed by John Tummon, President, KW Winemakers Guild

When I volunteered to review Home Winemaking Step By Step by Jon Iverson, I honestly expected to receive another mediocre winemaking book for amateurs with emphasis on concentrates and juice for ingredients. However I was pleasantly surprised to discover one of the most comprehensive guides to winemaking from fresh grapes that I have ever read. Home Winemaking provides a great deal of information on modern winemaking practices written in a concise and easy to understand style that will be useful to both focused beginners and advanced winemakers.

Iverson devotes the first half of his book to a relatively thorough discussion of basic winemaking skills from finding good grapes to bottling. The remainder of the book is devoted to more advanced winemakers who want to expand their knowledge. For example, Iverson explains various techniques such as cold maceration, extended maceration, carbonic maceration and saignee or bleeding to get the most out of your red grapes. This is particularly valuable information when working with red grapes from Ontario. In a concise, yet relatively in-depth-style Iverson discusses malolactic fermentation, chromatography tests, acid titration tests and testing residual sugar levels. There is even a chapter on the use of concentrates, where he points out that modern food processing techniques have recently resulted in an increase in the quality. There is a list of Canadian suppliers of quality concentrates.

Topics such as the use of oak, sparkling wines, winemaking problems and grape varieties are also briefly discussed. In the appendix Iverson includes his log or fermentation notes on three wines that he has made from different grape varieties including a frozen must from Peter Brehm.

Not too many winemakers agree on everything. Iverson uses Sparkaloid on more of his wines than I might and there is no mention of filtering. Not everyone would agree with his belief that all white wines should contain some residual sugar, but I am sure that most readers will agree that Home Winemaking Step By Step will make a valuable addition to their library.

When I first heard about this book the initial thought was, “So who needs another amateur winemaker book?” When it arrived I dug in with a heavy overlay of negativism – ready to tear it apart. That bias soon fell apart as the clarity and completeness became apparent.
One example should illustrate the craftsmanship in this work. The section of source material methodically describes Fresh Grapes, to concentrate in a tin. In the process he itemizes the processes and additions that happen to each section. At each step through the progression the product is calculated to reduce the probabilities of a failure for the wine maker. Along the way, Pambianchi conveys the awareness that the level of safety comes at the cost of the producing a great wine.Another welcome quality through out the work is the attention to detail. The “Do and Don’ts” witness this little section the cleaning property of Washing Soda of Carbonates and barrels.

For those who have already devoted much study time to the works of, Cornell.Davis, there will be only a few new bits that postdate these publications. The middle majority of winemakers will find logical organization makes this an easy read from front to back as well as a reference work. For the beginner, it is easy for a quick read will convey the essentials without getting inundated by the heavy chemistry.

All this for half the price of a half bottle of Icewine – what a bargain!