Wineol: develop with red wine

⚠️ Important notice: this is a highly experimental workshop

Wineol is not a stable or predictable developer. Unlike Caffenol — which gives consistent results with the same recipe — Wineol depends on many variables that are hard to control: the type of wine, its tannin content, sulphites, alcohol level, and even the batch and vintage. Two rolls developed with two “identical” wines can give radically different results. I have run experiments using exactly the same wine, temperature and chemical quantities, and the first time came out beautifully — the second time, a disaster.

Come to the workshop ready to experiment and to accept that the outcome might be a magnificent negative or a barely-readable one. Both are equally valuable as learning experiences.

A bottle of wine and pharmacy chemistry

Wineol works on the same principle as Caffenol: the tannins in red wine act as reducing agents, converting the silver halides in the emulsion into visible metallic silver. Washing soda raises the pH and activates the reaction; vitamin C boosts it and reduces fog; salt acts as a mild stabiliser.

The difference from Caffenol is that wine completely replaces water — it doesn’t mix in, it takes over. This makes the concentration of tannins and alcohol highly variable, and the process less controllable but far more interesting.

The recipe

For a standard 35mm tank (500 ml):

• 500 ml red wine — cheap, but with body and tannins (grenache, tempranillo, monastrell)
• 54 g washing soda — not to be confused with caustic soda
• 16 g vitamin C — pure ascorbic acid, from a pharmacy
• 10 g common salt

Key content

• Chemistry of Wineol: why tannins develop film and why results vary so much
• Choosing the wine: which wines work and which don’t, and why
• Developer preparation: cold dissolution, no resting needed
• Full process: development at 22 °C for 20 minutes, specific agitation with 4 taps for bubbles
• Rinsing, fixing and extended final wash (12 minutes)
• Reading the resulting negative: density, grain and characteristic violet tones
• Colour scanning: to bring out the warm and purple tones the wine creates

Included in the price

• Red wine (one bottle shared among participants)
• Washing soda, vitamin C and salt
• Use of developing tank, reel and changing bag
• Fixer and washing chemicals
• Use of the scanner for the final check
• Refreshments (and a glass of wine from whatever’s left in the bottle after developing)

What to bring

• A 35mm B&W roll, already shot (ISO 400 recommended — HP5, Tri-X or Fomapan 400)

Not included

• The 35mm roll — it must be yours and already exposed. You can buy one at Llumàtics (€12).
• Full roll scanning (available as an add-on to the Digitisation workshop or as a tutorial from €20)

Want to do all three organic developers in one session? Caffenol, Guinneol and Wineol can be combined into a 4-hour session. Write to us and we’ll organise it.