The primary operation performed on grapes when they're off from their storage is to de-stem them, which is the method of removing the grape from the shoots to which they are attached.
As soon as all the grapes within the batch are de-stemmed, they are placed into the wine press where they're compressed into a paste which in flip releases the should (the juice of the fruit). The resulting paste (or pomace) and should combination then pay time along during a cask and it is the length of time that the mixture sits with the should up-to-date with the grape skin and pulp that determines the character of the finished wine.
When the winemaker determines the correct quantity of your time has passed, the juice is drawn off and yeast added to begin the fermentation process with the remaining pomace, in several cases, being came to the vineyard for use as a fertilizer.
Once the color and sugar content are correct the cask valve is opened and the first juice, that is the simplest quality wine, is then transferred into other containers where the fermentation method is finalized.
‘Pressed wines’, which are stuffed with tannin, are created from the leftover solids. They have a sturdy colour and are generally mixed with the primary juice in several different ways that to form wines of different strengths and flavours.
When the fermentation method is complete, the wine is either bottled right away, or left to age.
White Wine
When creating white wine it's important not to damage the grapes, therefore they're poured into the receiving bins as quickly as possible. Once they are all in the receiving bin, the grapes are then transferred to the press where the should is separated from the skins and other solids.
At this stage the solids are disregarded and therefore the remaining should is slightly refrigerated before being transferred into a stainless-steel vat where it is allowed to ferment. Care is taken to keep up the temperature throughout fermenting which preserves the delicate aromas of the finished wine.
Once the fermentation method is complete, the resultant wine is decanted taking care to avoid the sediment that collects at the bottom of the vat. Once decanting, the wine is bottled and ready to be sold, and is best drunk within 2 years.
Sweet Dessert Wines
Dessert wines are created in one of two ways. In the first methodology, Botrytis Cinera, a fungus which grows terribly quickly, is used. This transforms the fruit and changes the color and conjointly alters the acid parts and sugar levels. The second method is to interrupt the fermentation process by adding alcohol. This technique creates a sturdy, sweet wine where the grape is the major flavour.
Grapes used for sweet wines are of the white Moscatel and Garnacha varieties which, along with the assembly process, leave the wine with a mushroom kind smell as the bottle is opened.