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Author Topic: How to make mass wine?  (Read 527 times)

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Offline AnthonyPadua

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How to make mass wine?
« on: April 15, 2024, 05:44:30 PM »
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  • Asking on behalf of a traditional independent priest in India.


    Offline Yeti

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    Re: How to make mass wine?
    « Reply #1 on: April 15, 2024, 06:51:15 PM »
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  • Asking on behalf of a traditional independent priest in India.
    .

    Wine is very easy to make. You press the juice out of grapes and allow it to ferment. You want to put it in a clean container and seal it with an air lock, such as you can get at any home brew store.

    You don't even need to press the juice yourself. You can get raw grape juice at a local winery and use that. I don't know if they have wineries in India, but that's how you do it.

    Some priests grow their own grapes and make their own wine. The grapes naturally have yeast on the skins, which gets into the juice when you squeeze them, and causes the sugars to ferment. I would recommend using a hygrometer to measure the alcoholic content, since you want to be sure it is wine before it is used for Mass. I think the rules say the wine should be at least 8% alcohol (normal table wine is 12-14%, so this is on the low end).

    I would suggest he go to a local home brew shop, if such things exist there, and ask them how to make his own wine. But really, wine is not difficult to make, which is part of the reason God used it for the Mass.


    Offline Univocity

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    Re: How to make mass wine?
    « Reply #2 on: April 16, 2024, 01:14:23 PM »
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  • .

    Wine is very easy to make. You press the juice out of grapes and allow it to ferment. You want to put it in a clean container and seal it with an air lock, such as you can get at any home brew store.

    You don't even need to press the juice yourself. You can get raw grape juice at a local winery and use that. I don't know if they have wineries in India, but that's how you do it.

    Some priests grow their own grapes and make their own wine. The grapes naturally have yeast on the skins, which gets into the juice when you squeeze them, and causes the sugars to ferment. I would recommend using a hygrometer to measure the alcoholic content, since you want to be sure it is wine before it is used for Mass. I think the rules say the wine should be at least 8% alcohol (normal table wine is 12-14%, so this is on the low end).

    I would suggest he go to a local home brew shop, if such things exist there, and ask them how to make his own wine. But really, wine is not difficult to make, which is part of the reason God used it for the Mass.
    All true.  I've made quite a bit myself.  However there are specific canonical requirements, the details of which I don't recall.  I don't believe it's limit to simply ferment the juice, but you must use the whole grape and only press the skins once.  Again, I don't recall the details.

    Offline Yeti

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    Re: How to make mass wine?
    « Reply #3 on: April 16, 2024, 01:45:55 PM »
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  • Hmm, I think the point of rules like that is to exclude drinks like grappa, for example, the Italian brandy that is made from fermenting wine skins and then distilling it. I think it's also supposed to forbid things like soaking the grape skins in water, for example, and fermenting that. I've seen rules against doing weird things like soaking raisins in water and fermenting it, as well.

    But as long as you squeeze grape juice out of the grapes and ferment it, that is wine!

    Offline Yeti

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    Re: How to make mass wine?
    « Reply #4 on: April 16, 2024, 01:51:03 PM »
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  • Here is the page from Jone's Moral Theology where he talks about various types of wine and whether they are allowed or not.

    So, it's a little detailed. There are precise rules about doing weird things like making wine out of raisins, but that's about it. From what I can tell, it has no problem with squeezing juice from grapes and fermenting it, which is what I believe is correct. You don't want to add anything to it; you don't want to use it before it ferments or after it decays into vinegar.

    Other than that, wine is pretty foolproof. :laugh1: