8 Pieces of Equipment for Making Homemade Cider and Wine

The apple trees are heavy with fruit, and the grapevines are finally ready for harvest. Turning that bounty into cider or wine is one of the most rewarding ways to preserve the season’s work. With the right set of tools, the process is straightforward, repeatable, and deeply satisfying.

Disclosure: As an Amazon Associate, this site earns from qualifying purchases. Thank you!

Getting Started with Homemade Cider and Wine

Making cider or wine at home is a process of controlled transformation. You are guiding a natural process—fermentation—to a delicious conclusion. Success isn’t about expensive, complicated machinery; it’s about having a few key pieces of equipment that allow you to control the critical variables: juice extraction, sanitation, and fermentation.

Investing in a solid starter kit from the beginning saves immense frustration. Trying to improvise a fruit press or ferment in a bucket without a proper airlock often leads to contamination and wasted effort. The right tools aren’t just conveniences; they are what enable you to produce a clean, stable, and enjoyable beverage year after year. This guide focuses on durable, effective equipment that forms the foundation of any small-scale cidery or winery.

Fruit Crusher – Weston Manual Apple and Fruit Crusher

Before you can press juice from apples or grapes, you must break them open. A crusher, also called a scratter, accomplishes this by tearing the fruit into a fine pulp, dramatically increasing the surface area for pressing. Simply chopping the fruit with a knife won’t do; you need to rupture the cell walls to maximize your juice yield. Without proper crushing, even the most powerful press will leave gallons of potential cider behind, locked inside intact fruit chunks.

The Weston Manual Apple and Fruit Crusher is the perfect starting point for the serious hobbyist. Its heavy-duty cast iron construction is built to last, while the stainless steel hopper and crushing teeth resist rust and are easy to clean. The manual crank operation means you can set it up anywhere, with no need for electricity. It’s designed to be mounted over a bucket or the press basket itself, creating a simple, efficient workflow.

This crusher is best operated by two people—one to feed fruit into the hopper and one to turn the crank. For stability, it needs to be bolted to a sturdy wooden frame or sawhorse. While it can handle pears and other soft fruits, it truly excels with apples. This tool is ideal for someone processing anywhere from a few bushels to a dozen, turning a mountain of fruit into press-ready pulp in a single afternoon.

Fruit Press – Squeeze Master Fruit and Apple Cider Press

Once your fruit is crushed into pulp, the press takes over. Its job is to apply immense, steady pressure to squeeze every last drop of juice from that pulp. The press is the heart of the operation, and a good one separates a frustrating experience from a productive and enjoyable one. It’s the difference between a few quarts of juice and several gallons from the same amount of fruit.

The Squeeze Master Fruit and Apple Cider Press is a classic for a reason. Its ratchet-style design allows you to apply tremendous pressure incrementally, giving the juice time to flow. Built with a solid oak basket and a heavy-duty steel frame, it’s a durable tool that will handle season after season of use. The included pressing blocks and mesh bag ensure you get a clean press without pulp slipping through.

This press requires some physical effort, but the mechanical advantage of the ratchet makes it manageable for almost anyone. You’ll need a food-grade bucket or tub to catch the juice flowing from the spout. For best results, fill the basket with crushed pulp, fold the mesh bag over, place the pressing blocks on top, and begin tightening the ratchet. This press is perfectly scaled for the output of the Weston crusher, making them an ideal pair for a complete home pressing setup.

Fermenter – Fermonster 7 Gallon Wide Mouth Carboy

The fermenter is where your fresh-pressed juice becomes cider or wine. It’s a sealed vessel that holds the liquid while yeast converts sugars into alcohol and carbon dioxide. A proper fermenter must be airtight (except for the airlock) to prevent oxygen and spoilage microbes from getting in, and it must be made of a non-reactive, easy-to-clean material.

The Fermonster 7 Gallon Wide Mouth Carboy is a modern improvement on the classic glass carboy. Made from PET plastic, it’s virtually unbreakable, lightweight, and much safer to handle when full. Its standout feature is the 4-inch wide mouth, which makes it incredibly easy to clean, add fruit purees, or pitch yeast compared to the narrow neck of traditional carboys. The 7-gallon capacity is perfect for a 5 or 6-gallon batch, leaving ample headspace to contain the vigorous foam (krausen) of early fermentation.

Because it’s plastic, you must use soft cloths or brushes for cleaning to avoid scratches, which can harbor bacteria. The smooth, clear walls let you monitor the fermentation process, watching the yeast work and the cider clear over time. This fermenter is the right choice for anyone who values safety, convenience, and ease of cleaning in their home brewery.

Airlock – Standard 3-Piece Fermentation Airlock

The airlock is a small but absolutely critical device. During fermentation, yeast produces a massive amount of carbon dioxide gas. This gas needs to escape the fermenter, but outside air—full of oxygen and wild bacteria—must be prevented from getting in. The airlock is a simple, one-way valve that solves this problem perfectly.

The Standard 3-Piece Fermentation Airlock is the industry workhorse. It’s inexpensive, effective, and easy to understand. It consists of a body, a float, and a vented cap. When filled to the line with sanitizer or a neutral spirit like vodka, the CO2 pressure from inside pushes up the float, bubbles out, and the float settles back down, maintaining the seal.

These airlocks are designed to fit into a drilled hole in a fermenter lid or a rubber bung. The three-piece design makes it simple to take apart for thorough cleaning between batches, a key advantage over other styles. There is no reason to spend more money on a different design; this simple, reliable tool does its job perfectly and is the right choice for brewers at any level.

Sanitizer – Star San High Foaming Acid Sanitizer

Cleanliness is important, but sanitation is everything. Cleaning removes visible dirt, while sanitizing eliminates the invisible microbes—wild yeast and bacteria—that can turn your delicious cider into sour vinegar. Every single piece of equipment that touches your juice after it has been pressed must be sanitized without fail.

Star San High Foaming Acid Sanitizer is the gold standard for homebrewers and winemakers. Its key advantage is that it is a no-rinse sanitizer. When mixed to the correct dilution, you simply spray it on or submerge your equipment for a minute, let it drain, and it’s ready to use. Any remaining foam is harmless and will not affect the flavor of your batch.

A small bottle of Star San concentrate will last for dozens of batches, making it incredibly cost-effective. The foaming action is a feature, not a bug; it helps the sanitizer cling to surfaces and get into small crevices. Forgetting to sanitize is the number one cause of failed batches. Using a reliable, no-rinse product like Star San makes this crucial step fast, easy, and foolproof.

The Importance of Cleanliness in Fermentation

The battle for good cider or wine is won or lost on the sanitation front. Your goal is to create the perfect environment for your chosen yeast strain to thrive, and that means eliminating all competition. Wild yeasts and bacteria are everywhere—on the fruit, in the air, on your hands, and on your equipment. While some traditional methods embrace wild fermentation, for repeatable, predictable results, you must control the microbial environment.

The process is always two steps: clean, then sanitize. First, scrub your equipment with a brewing-specific cleaner like PBW (Powdered Brewery Wash) or an unscented oxygen-based cleaner to remove all physical residue and biofilms. Rinse thoroughly. Only then do you apply a sanitizer like Star San to the clean surfaces.

This applies to everything: the fermenter, the lid, the airlock, the auto-siphon, your hydrometer and test jar, and eventually, your bottles and bottling equipment. A few rogue bacteria can introduce off-flavors, while acetobacter, an airborne bacterium, can convert your alcohol into acetic acid (vinegar) if it gets a foothold. Taking sanitation seriously is the single most important habit you can develop as a home fermenter.

Hydrometer – Herculometer Triple Scale Hydrometer

A hydrometer is your most important measurement tool. It measures the specific gravity—or density—of your juice, which is directly related to its sugar content. By taking a reading before fermentation begins (Original Gravity or OG) and another when it’s finished (Final Gravity or FG), you can accurately calculate the final alcohol by volume (ABV). It takes the guesswork out of fermentation.

The Herculometer Triple Scale Hydrometer is an excellent choice, especially for beginners. Unlike fragile glass hydrometers, this one is made from durable polycarbonate, making it much more resistant to accidental drops. It features three easy-to-read scales:

• Specific Gravity: The core measurement for tracking fermentation.
• Brix: A scale often used in winemaking to measure sugar in grape must.
• Potential Alcohol: A quick reference for estimating the final ABV based on the starting gravity.

To use it, you’ll need a sanitized test jar. Fill the jar with a sample of your juice or wine and float the hydrometer in it, giving it a gentle spin to dislodge any air bubbles. Read the measurement at the liquid’s surface. This tool is essential for knowing when fermentation is truly complete and for creating consistent, repeatable recipes.

Auto-Siphon – Fermtech 1/2" Racking Cane

"Racking" is the process of transferring your cider or wine from one vessel to another, leaving a layer of sediment (called "lees") behind. This is done to move the liquid off the dead yeast cells for aging and to improve clarity. The traditional way involved starting a siphon by mouth, an awkward and unsanitary method.

The Fermtech 1/2" Racking Cane, or auto-siphon, makes this process simple, clean, and efficient. It’s a rigid cane with a one-way pump mechanism. You submerge the cane into your fermenter, attach a sanitized tube to the outlet, and give the inner tube a single firm pump. This starts the siphon flow instantly and effortlessly, without you ever having to touch the liquid.

The 1/2" diameter model is ideal for 5-gallon or larger batches, allowing for a quick transfer that minimizes oxygen exposure. A small cap on the bottom of the cane prevents it from sucking up the sediment from the bottom of the fermenter. An auto-siphon is a mandatory piece of modern brewing equipment; it’s a simple invention that completely solves one of the most common sanitation risks in homebrewing.

Bottle Corker – Ferrari Double Lever Wine Corker

For wines and still ciders intended for aging, a cork is the traditional and often best closure. A properly inserted cork provides a long-term seal that allows for slow, graceful aging. However, forcing a cork into a bottle requires significant, controlled force that you can’t achieve by hand.

The Ferrari Double Lever Wine Corker is the benchmark for home winemakers. Its simple, robust design uses two long levers to provide the mechanical advantage needed to compress the cork and slide it smoothly into the bottle neck. The spring-loaded base adjusts to fit standard wine bottle sizes, and the depth of the cork can be set for a perfect, flush fit.

This floor-style corker is far superior to smaller, hand-held models, which can struggle to insert corks fully or can leave them crooked. While it represents a small investment, its reliability and ease of use are well worth it for anyone planning to bottle more than a handful of bottles per year. It’s the right tool for creating a professional, long-lasting seal on your finished product.

Bottling, Aging, and Enjoying Your Creation

The final step is to package your creation for storage and, eventually, enjoyment. For still wines and ciders, bottles and corks are the classic choice. For sparkling or carbonated ciders, beer bottles and crown caps are the standard, requiring a simple wing-style bottle capper instead of a corker. Whichever you choose, ensure your bottles are impeccably clean and sanitized before filling.

Patience is the final, crucial ingredient. Most homemade ciders and wines benefit immensely from at least a few months of aging in the bottle. During this time, harsh flavors will mellow, and complex new aromas and tastes will develop. Store your bottles in a cool, dark place away from temperature swings. A simple logbook noting your recipe, gravity readings, and tasting notes will help you refine your process for the next season’s harvest.

Your Complete Cider and Wine Starter Equipment List

This list covers the essential gear to take you from whole fruit to finished, bottled cider or wine.

• Crushing: Weston Manual Apple and Fruit Crusher
• Pressing: Squeeze Master Fruit and Apple Cider Press
• Fermenting: Fermonster 7 Gallon Wide Mouth Carboy
• Fermentation Control: Standard 3-Piece Fermentation Airlock
• Sanitation: Star San High Foaming Acid Sanitizer
• Measurement: Herculometer Triple Scale Hydrometer
• Transferring: Fermtech 1/2" Racking Cane
• Bottling: Ferrari Double Lever Wine Corker (for wine/still cider)

Armed with this equipment, you’re not just making a beverage; you’re participating in a timeless tradition. You are transforming the fleeting abundance of a harvest into something that can be shared and savored for months to come. The process itself is the reward.