Beginner information

Mike, Try this link.... Courtesy of Lum Eisenman John Dixon

36 gallons of grapes could be anywhere from 130 pounds (for large table grapes) to 180 pounds (for small cabernet grapes). The yield could be anywhere from .06 to .08 gallons per pound depending upon the skin:juice ratio [Larger grapes have more juice per pound than smaller grapes] and evaporation.

So, your 36 pounds could yield anywhere from 7.8 - 14.4 gallons. But, assuming they are small ripe wine grapes, I would guess it will yield

10.5 - 11 gallons, which is very close to the 1/3 figure you were quoted.

You will need a 20 gallon primary to ferment on the skins, because they will add about 20% to the volume. Once the ferment gets going, the cap will float very high, and will almost reach the top. It's better to have too much headroom (in a primary) than too little.

The cheapest place to get a 20-gallon primary is at Home Depot. Look where they have the trash cans, and get a 20-gallon GREY, YELLOW, or WHITE Rubbermaid Brute container with lid for $16. Only the three colours mentioned are food-grade, so don't get any other colour (especially green) even if it's on sale. [And make sure it is Rubbermaid Brute and not the cheaper rubbermaid product they also sell.] Restaurant supplies and homebrew shops charge considerably more for the same primaries.

While you are there, you should also get one or two WHITE 5-gallon "paint" pails (~$2 each) with lids (~$1 each) (They are a bit cheaper at Walmart, but they never have the lids) in case my volume estimate is low, and you have some "overflow". They will come in handy for smaller batches, and other purposes as well.

The Brute lids forms a adequate cover for primary fermentation without using an airlock. But they do NOT form a tight enough seal for secondary fermentation. The 5-gallon lids can be laid loosely over the bucket, or you can hammer them in place, and drill a hole for an airlock. Use a 3/8" hole and grommet, so you don't need a separate bung. I recommend just laying them loosely over the top of the bucket. It's much easier, and you are going to have to remove them and replace them 2-3 times a day to push the cap down and monitor your ferment.

You will also need two five-gallon glass carboys, and some smaller ones, to hold the wine during secondary fermentation and aging. It's a good idea to have extra carboys for racking, but you can rack into one of your 5-gallon buckets, wash and rinse the carboy, and then rack back into it, if necessary.

I assume if you are purchasing grapes by the gallon, that they may have been destemmed and crushed already, in which case you can skip those steps.

They may also have been sulphited, so check before adding any more.

It's better to take your own sugar and acid readings, but if you don't have the equipment, you can probably rely on those taken by the vinyard and printed on the buckets the grapes come in.

The rest of the instructions in my earlier post remain applicable.

Good luck and good vintning.