🍷 Essential Equipment for Your First Gallon of Homemade Wine

Making your own wine at home is exciting — and surprisingly simple if you have the right tools. For your first 1-gallon (≈4.5 L) batch, you don’t need a huge brewery setup. A few key pieces of equipment will get you started, help you control fermentation, and ensure your wine is clean, safe, and delicious.

Below is a complete beginner’s equipment list.

🛠️ 1. Fermenting Bucket

A food-grade plastic brewing bucket is where your primary fermentation happens.

Capacity: At least 1 gallon (4.5 L) with extra headspace. When fermenting your wine will froth from the action of the yeast. You need extra headspace to allow for this. My recommendation would be to purchase a 12ltr brewing bucket.
Features: Comes with a tight-fitting lid to prevent contamination.

👉 Amazon tip: Search “1-gallon food grade fermenting bucket” to find inexpensive starter kits.

🍶 2. Carboys / Demijohns

After primary fermentation, your wine moves into a carboy or glass demijohn for secondary fermentation. Glass is ideal because it’s non-porous and won’t retain flavours. In the UK we generally use demijohns. They are easy to source. I would highly recommend NOT to buy the plastic PET bottles sold as demijohns. They are weak, hard to clean, and don’t last very long. If you are new to trying to make wine, they serve a purpose (cheap!), but as with everything, if you buy cheap you buy twice.

Capacity: Minimum 1 gallon (4.5 L) for a small batch, but recommend larger for “headspace”.
Airlock compatible: Essential for letting CO₂ escape without letting oxygen or bacteria in.

👉 Amazon tip: Search “1-gallon glass carboy” or “demijohn 4.5L glass”.

💧 3. Airlocks & Bungs

Airlocks allow fermentation gases to escape while keeping contaminants out.

Use: Fit into the top of your carboy or bucket with a rubber bung.
Tip: Always fill with water or sanitizer solution to the marked line.

👉 Amazon tip: Search “winemaking airlock” or “rubber bung for carboy”.

🔄 4. Siphon Tubes / Auto-Siphons

A siphon is used to transfer wine from the bucket to a carboy or from carboy to bottles without disturbing sediment.

Auto-siphons are beginner-friendly, with a simple pump action.
Tip: Avoid stirring up the lees (sediment) — it keeps your wine clear.

👉 Amazon tip: Search “auto siphon wine” or “syphon tube winemaking”.

🥄 5. Stirring Spoon / Paddle

Use a long, food-grade plastic or stainless steel spoon for mixing sugar, fruit, and yeast in the fermenting bucket.

Avoid metal that can react with acids (stainless steel is fine).
Make sure it’s clean and sterilised before every use.

👉 Amazon tip: Search “plastic brewing spoon” or “stainless steel winemaking paddle”.

📏 6. Hydrometer & Test Jar

A hydrometer measures sugar content and alcohol potential. This is key for knowing when fermentation is complete and estimating alcohol strength.

Use with a Trial Sampling Jar to float the hydrometer safely. Usually purchased together.
Measures specific gravity; numbers let you calculate ABV.

👉 Amazon tip: Search “wine hydrometer kit” or “hydrometer with test jar”.

🧼 7. Sterilising / Cleaning Supplies

Cleanliness is critical in winemaking. Use one of the following to sterilise your equipment:

Campden tablets (sodium metabisulphite)
No-rinse brewery sanitizer (Star San, VWP)
Oxygen cleaners (unscented, additive-free)

For more information on sterilising your equipment see our posts:

👉 Amazon tip: Search “winemaking sanitizer” or “Campden tablets”.

🍾 8. Bottles & Corks / Caps

Once fermentation is complete, you’ll need bottles and closures.

Standard wine bottles, swing-top bottles, or PET bottles for small batches.
Corks, synthetic corks, or caps depending on the bottle type.

👉 Amazon tip: Search “wine bottles 750ml” and “wine corks” or “wine bottle caps”.

💡 Optional Extras

Funnel (for bottling)
Straining bag (for fruit)
Thermometer (to monitor fermentation temperature)

✅ Quick Tips for Your First Gallon

Start small — 1 gallon is perfect for beginners.
Sterilise everything that touches your wine.
Use a hydrometer to track fermentation — it prevents surprises.
Be patient — wine improves with time, even in small batches.

With these tools, you’ll be ready to make your first gallon of homemade wine — safely, reliably, and with excellent flavour.