The Birth of Wine

After being harvested, the grapes are transported to the winery and sorted on the sorting tables. the grape is crushed (the crushing consists of breaking the grape berries to extract the must without crushing the seeds). Next, a mixture of grape juice, skins, pulp and seeds is poured into large vats. At this stage, different grape varieties are not mixed.

Alcoholic fermentation takes about 7 to 10 days. During this time it is necessary to control the temperature in the vat so that it does not rise above 32°C, otherwise the yeast, which converts sugar into ethanol, will die. The fermentation process releases carbon dioxide, which pushes the grape skins, pulp and seeds up to the surface, forming a so-called ‘cap’. Grape juice has no colour, as all fragrances, colour and tannins are in the skin and seeds. To extract these elements a winemaker makes a mixture of the must and the cap, which is followed by maceration. The flavoured bordeaux must is separated from the grape skins, pulp and seeds, then further fermentation takes place. After this, wine is transferred to oak barrels where it ages from 8 to 24 months. During all this time, the wine evaporates through the pores of the oak, so the winemaker must constantly refill it to avoid the wine turning into vinegar.