The stuff we'd
actually buy again
We don't sell anything from this site. We just point at the kits, supplies, gifts, and labels that worked for us — and link out to whoever's selling them. Buy from Amazon, Northern Brewer, MoreWine, Etsy. Up to you.
75 picks · 12 categories · 0 things we wouldn't buy ourselves.

Russ's Favorite Beginner Supply Bundle
Every supply a first-time winemaker needs — minus the wine itself. Russ has other bundles, but this is the one he hands you on day one.

Pick a shelf
12 categories · 75 picks. Each shelf has its own page with our notes, photos, and where to buy.



Wine Kits & Juice
The actual wine — concentrate kits, fresh juice pails, the works.



Fermentation
Buckets, carboys, airlocks — the gear your wine actually lives in.



Transfer & Racking
Moving wine without making a mess of it (or your kitchen floor).



Testing & Measurement
Hydrometers, refractometers, pH meters — the honest instruments.



Cleaning & Sanitation
The boring half of the hobby. Also the half that saves your batch.



Bottling Day
Bottles, corks, corkers, the bottle tree — and a roll of blue painters tape.



Yeast & Additives
Yeast strains, nutrients, sulfites, fining agents — the chemistry shelf.



Oak
Chips, cubes, spirals, staves — the difference between fine and forgettable.



Tools & Misc
Spoons, scales, funnels, gloves — the small stuff that makes everything easier.



Gifts for the Wine Lover
What to wrap for the friend who'd rather drink it than make it.



Gifts for the Home Winemaker
For the friend with a carboy in the basement and stained fingers in October.



Wine Labels & Gifting Your Own Wine
Label your batch, dress the bottle, hand it over. Weddings, holidays, housewarmings, party favors.
We're winemakers, not a store.
Russ has been making wine in his basement for forty years. Todd jumped in a few years ago. We started this site because friends kept asking us what to buy — and we kept writing the same email.
So this is the email, made public. Every link goes to whoever's actually selling the product. We don't take a cut, we don't get freebies, and we won't recommend anything we wouldn't pour for ourselves on a Tuesday.