How much wine do you make? (2023)

Winemaking Talk - Winemaking Forum

Help Support Winemaking Talk - Winemaking Forum:

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, and others.

How much wine do you make per year?

  • 1 to 5 gallons / 4 to 19 liters

    Votes: 1 1.3%
  • 6 to 10 gallons / 23 to 38 liters

    Votes: 2 2.6%
  • 11 to 25 gallons / 42 to 95 liters

    Votes: 16 21.1%
  • 26 to 50 gallons / 98 to 189 liters

    Votes: 28 36.8%
  • 51 to 75 gallons / 193 to 284 liters

    Votes: 14 18.4%
  • 76 to 100 gallons / 288 to 379 liters

    Votes: 5 6.6%
  • 101 to 150 gallons / 382 to 568 liters

    Votes: 2 2.6%
  • 51 to 200 gallons / 572 to 757 liters

    Votes: 4 5.3%
  • 200+ gallons / 758+ liters

    Votes: 4 5.3%

  • Total voters
    76
  • Poll closed .
I have so much wine it ain’t funny. I make about 40 gal per year and I can only drink so much, but I would like to hit 60 gal in order to fill a barrel. I wish that I could sell some but that is a no no.
You might consider 55 and 110 liter barrels, which are more manageable for your output.
 
I figure that being around the wine making area gives me more chances to snag a cheap, large barrel. I should look into the cost of the smaller barrels. Then I need to buy a floor jack to move the barrels and a pump. etc. LOL the fun never ends
 
I figure that being around the wine making area gives me more chances to snag a cheap, large barrel. I should look into the cost of the smaller barrels. Then I need to buy a floor jack to move the barrels and a pump. etc. LOL the fun never ends
Full size barrels are easy to find, including used if you want neutral barrels. I lucked into a pair of 54 liter barrels, as the couple who owned them were getting out of winemaking.

It can't hurt to ask at local wineries if they have used barrels in good condition they want to get rid of. Or ... they may be kind enough to let you purchase a new one through them, if that's what you want.

Huh, I just gave myself an idea -- I'd love a neutral barrel in the 19-30 liter range. I expect that will be hard to find, but if I'm not on a timetable, there are local wineries to check with.
 
It can't hurt to ask at local wineries if they have used barrels in good condition they want to get rid of. Or ... they may be kind enough to let you purchase a new one through them, if that's what you want.
winebusiness.com is a good resource for used barrels. You should be able to pick up an older neutral barrel for $30-$60 (ie used 3-4+ times), with newer barrels commanding a higher price. Some of the wineries that list there want to sell all or none (or at least have a minimum order size), but I expect many of them will sell a single barrel.

Half barrels are rare, and I don't think I've ever seen a commercial winery use anything smaller than that.
 
With 45 people responding so far, nearly 40% make 26 to 50 gallons per year. IIRC, it was about the same with last year's poll.

The 11 to 75 gallon range is over 80%, with none reporting less and about 18% making more. Considering my own production, these numbers make sense, as 75 US gallons is 30 cases of wine. Very few non-winemakers that I know of have more than a case at any time ...
 
@ChuckD & @GSMChris -- you are NOT typical. :r

A few years back a friend proudly showed me the 6 bottle rack he installed under a cabinet in his kitchen. He had 4 bottles in it. This is a lot of people.

He thought I was crazy as I normally have more than 20 cases ... until I had him open his liquor cabinet, where he had over a dozen bottles of different Scotches, plus another dozen bottles of various things. He realized we had a commonality, just a slightly different focus on that. :)
 
@ChuckD & @GSMChris -- you are NOT typical. :r

A few years back a friend proudly showed me the 6 bottle rack he installed under a cabinet in his kitchen. He had 4 bottles in it. This is a lot of people.

He thought I was crazy as I normally have more than 20 cases ... until I had him open his liquor cabinet, where he had over a dozen bottles of different Scotches, plus another dozen bottles of various things. He realized we had a commonality, just a slightly different focus on that. :)

I agree with Bryan. Before I started making wine I thought I was an absolute GENIUS when I started buying wine by the case, as in, I bought a case when the previous case ran out! :)

I did start to up my game even before making wine, but not drastically.
 
My wine closet. I get nervous when I hit 50% occupancy 😂🤣😂🤣
I like your style, sir. One day I am going to have 2400 square feet of shop space to do with as I please. I am thinking roughly 1/4 will be wine operations, sinks, counter, cold storage, etc etc. Then my 100 bottle rack in the house will finally make sense. 😄

Looks like you have a decent stock of retail wines mixed in with your own?
 
I like variety too much to buy a case, except on rare occasions. Costco had a Kirkland Bordeaux that tasted great but was clearly young. We bought a whole case and are waiting eagerly to dig in.
One of my tactics when buying from Total Wine is to research wines, then purchase 3 bottles of each when buying a case. I get the case discount (which depends on the coupon at that time) but get a variety. One of each wine is WAY too few, but when I buy a full case, it's something I've had and really want.
 
Back
Top