Wine Basics #2 - How do you make wine?

There are many techniques and options available to winemakers which we may cover in other topics but to start with we’re just going to describe the most common wine making processes. We don’t want to get over-technical in explaining how wine is made so will limit our explanation to the main processes involved which are Crushing, Pressing, Alcoholic Fermentation, Maturation, Storage and Bottling.

**Crushing**

This is simply the first thing that happens in wine making. It involves the splitting of the grape skins to release some of the grape juice using a grape crushing and de-stemming machine.

**Pressing**

The crushed grapes are squeezed in a grape pressing machine to extract as much liquid as possible from the grapes. For white wine this happens before fermentation and after for red wine.

**Alcoholic Fermentation**

This is the process when yeast feeds on the sugars in the grape juice and converts it into alcohol, creating heat and carbon dioxide (CO₂) which is allowed to escape. For most dry wines, the alcoholic fermentation stops naturally when the yeast has consumed all the sugars in the grape juice. The level of alcohol produced in most dry wines will be between 11.5% and 16% abv and will depend on the amount of sugar in the grapes.

We will talk about yeasts in more detail in another blog but it's worth noting that yeast is a microorganism that is used in in winemaking. Nearly all mass-produced wines found in supermarkets and major retailers are made using specially developed commercial yeasts. All the wine producers we represent use only “Native Yeasts” that have been cultivated by the winemaker within their own cellar and are an intrinsic part of their wine. Scientific studies have found that wines made with native yeasts have higher polyphenols and antioxidants than wines made with commercial yeasts.

**Maturation**

Once the fermentation has finished the newly made wine needs to mature for a while prior to bottling to develop the flavour and body of the wine. The length of time needed will depend on many factors but can range from a few months to several years. Wine normally is matured in oak barrels or steel tanks.

**Storage and Bottling**

When the winemaker is happy that the wine is ready to be packed and ready to be released the wine will be transferred from the maturation tanks to storage tanks adjacent to the bottling line. The wine is then piped to the bottling machine via a filtration system. The bottling machine will fill the bottle and inject an inert gas into the space between the wine and the top of the bottle so when the cork or screwcap is applied, no air is trapped in the bottle.

If you want to know more or have any questions, please let us know.