Making wine doesn't have to be expensive. In fact, you can usually make back the costs of the wine making equipment after only one or two batches. If you figure that a standard size batch makes about 30 bottles, and that the ingredients that you will put in each bottle will cost anywhere from $2 to $4, you will see that it won't take long for the equipment that you need to pay for itself.

But what do you actually need and what are the toys that will make the job easier or the wine taste better? Follow this guide and you will get the right winemaking equipment the first time around.

• Fermenter: Without this, you will end up with juice, but what good is having grape or fruit juice at your next dinner party? A basic fermenter is going to be a clean plastic bucket with an air lock.
• Carboy: If you have tried your hand at beer, you know that the carboy is where your beer settles for a bit before you put it in your bottles. In wine making, the carboy is the place where you are going to have a secondary fermentation and any long term aging that you want (unless you want to age in oak barrels).
• Corker: If you plan on bottling in your individual bottles with real or synthetic corks, you will need a corker. You can get several varieties, but if you plan on doing more than a few bottles at a time, upgrade to a better version to save yourself a serious workout and a lot of frustration. In addition to a corker, you are going to need corks. Unlike bottles, you can't use corks over and over again, so make sure that you buy enough of them.
• Hydrometer: A hydrometer measures the specific gravity of a beverage and can help you to determine the alcohol level in your wine.

That's all of the wine making equipment that you need to make your first batch. Sure, after making a few batches, you may want to buy a second carboy so you can have multiple batches going on at one time or some other gadgets, but it really isn't necessary at all to have a lot of accessories for wine making.