Saturday was the last class of Millbrook Vineyard & Winery's Winegrowing Boot Camp. We took the vines from the cradle to the bottle and Saturday we proudly bottled our season's hard work.
After the grapes were pressed the wine went into neutral oak pungents about 270 gallons and is fermented in those barrels. The wine went into the barrels after the grapes were pressed until 2 weeks ago. At that time the barrels were moved outside to cold stabilize the wine.
The pungents came back inside and wine was racked into a tank. Then put into a portable plastic tank they use for small bottling. They bottled the first 84 cases that morning before the class came. Now it's the time to bottle and label the classes wine.
The wine gets pumped out of the tank, goes through two cartridge filters to fine the wine. Then into the bottle, it gets corked and put into the boxes for sale.
We were all responsible for catching our bottles as they came down the line and packing them in the cases.
2 comments:
I’ve always enjoyed the bottling stage. Why, it is the most gratifying part! I know you’d agree. Bottling is like the conclusion of your hard work and fruit of labor. So, have you had a taste of your wine or you’re letting it sit for more time before consuming?
Hi Rob - I am going to let it sit for about a month or so to let it settle from bottle shock. Then I'll pop the cork on one.
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