That little old winemaker -- you

Becoming a home winemaker can be as simple as buying a 5-gallon do-it-yourself kit for $100 or as elaborate as hiring a consultant and crew to create a personal vineyard, designed and planted for $5,000 to $20,000 an acre. Here are some sources to get you started:

Supplies

Winemaking stores

The Home Wine, Beer and Cheesemaking Shop in Woodland Hills sells kits, tools, chemicals and grapes, and offers classes. Owner John Daume says a serious beginner can get started making wine from fresh grapes at home for a few hundred dollars. (818) 224-3656,www.homebeerwinecheese.com

Squashed Grapes in Camarillo sells materials and teaches the basics of winemaking using in-store equipment. (805) 384-9721, www.squashedgrapes.com

The Florida-based Home Wine & Beer Trade Assn. has a locator service on its website to find home winemaking stores. www.hwbta.org

Nurseries

There are thousands of varieties of grapes, but a nursery staff can tell you which grow best in a given area. Cabernets and Merlots thrive in warmer sites, while Chardonnays and Pinot Noirs like cooler, foggy sites in valleys or on slopes facing the ocean.

Expert help

Classes

Some universities offer extension classes on growing wine grapes and making wine. For example, UCLA Extension has a four-course program; classes start Sept. 26. (310) 825-9971, www.uclaextension.com. In addition, UC Davis has a winemaking course for distance learners. (800) 752-0881; www.universityextension.ucdavis.edu

Consultants

Home grape growers should start by figuring out how many bottles of wine they want each year, then determine the size and location of the plot. A consultant such as Wes Hagen can help for $100 to $200 an hour. (805) 735-2196. But the Master Gardeners programs through the UC Cooperative Extension Office offer free advice to home gardeners. www.mastergardeners.org

Wine groups and fairs

Wine societies sponsor educational activities and competitions. In L.A., the Cellarmasters home winemaking club meets at the Home Wine, Beer and Cheesemaking Shop in Woodland Hills the first Thursday of the month. (818) 340-9376, www.cellarmastersla.org. The Orange County Wine Society has a winemaking subdivision. (714) 708-1636, www.ocws.org. Nationally, there’s the American Wine Society, based in North Carolina. (919) 403-0022; www.americanwinesociety.org.

To see some award winners, check out the L.A. County Fair’s homemade winemaking competition Friday through Oct. 2 at the Fairplex, 1101 W. McKinley Ave., Pomona. (909) 865-4590, www.lacountyfair.com.

Research

Books

How-to books that focus on small-scale vintners and provide descriptions of grape varieties, growing regions and organic methods include “From Vines to Wines: The Complete Guide to Growing Grapes and Making Your Own Wine” by Jeff Cox (Storey Books, $18.95); “The Grape Grower: A Guide to Organic Viticulture” by Lon Rombough (Chelsea Green Publishing Co., $35); and “90 Years of Winemaking” by Richard Schumm (Authorhouse, $15.50).

Online

WineMaker magazine has step-by-step instructions on its website (winemakermag.com/yourfirstwine/grapes.html). Del Mar winemaker Lum Eisenman’s free book, “The Home Winemakers Manual,” is downloadable at home.att.net/lumeisenman/.

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-- Janet Eastman