I used to use bleach. I would add some to water, then wash everything with it. I would rinse it out with tap water, but it was hard to tell when it was all rinsed out. So I switched to potassium permanganate. It kills germs just as well, but it has an intense purple color, which makes it...
My first batch of fruit wine, in fact my first batch of any wine, was a gallon of peach. It came out very well, and I did not use sulfite, sulfur dioxide, or any such compound.
I know, I know. I MUST use sulfites. Yes I must. But I don't. :i
My understanding is that fruit should be very ripe - almost to the point of rotting - but not yet rotten. If you cut the parts off that really are rotten you might be OK. My first batch of wine ever was peach. The fruit was hard, so I ripened it in a paper bag.
Last weekend, I bottled a gallon batch I made from Smuckers strawberry jam. It tasted pretty good before bottling. We will see what a little age does to it.
Here is a look at one of my bottles of strawberry jam wine. As usual, my gallon made exactly 5 of the 750 ml bottles. The homemade label is crude, but it gets the job done.
I just bottled my strawberry jam wine today. It tasted pretty good. I added a few ml of glycerin to each bottle for body, and a few ml of sugar syrup to produce a little bit of carbonation.
I started using bleach to sanitize my equipment, then I switched over to a solution of potassium permanganate KMnO4 I bought on eBay. The strong color lets me know if it's rinsed. No innocent sulfites were destroyed to make any of my wines.
My first batch of wine was peach, and I am currently working on a batch of strawberry started from preserves. But I never made peach-strawberry. That should be interesting.
I make up my own solution to sanitize my bottles and jugs. I used to use a solution of bleach and dishwash soap in water. This worked well. At the end of my last batch, I switched over to potassium permanganate ( KMnO4 ) dissolved in water.
This brings back fond memories. My first batch was a gallon of peach made from the fruit. No hydrometer, no acid testing, no sulfite, a quarter inch of sediment in the bottom of the bottles - and it still came out great. :D
I often have sediment in the bottom of my bottles. A small amount is actually allowed in winemaking competitions. Now as for sediment FLOATING in the wine, that is something else. I'm not sure what would cause that.
I usually add most of the sugar, ferment in the primary bucket until it tastes dry, then add a small dose of sugar. I sterilize the sugar and stirring spoon in the oven to make sure there are no nasty bacteria.