A person harvesting a whole cluster of wine grape bunch from a vine

Whole Cluster Fermentation

Whole cluster (or bunch) fermentation is the process by which everything goes into the fermentation process.  Skins, seeds, stems, you name it.  The invention of the de-stemmer revolutionized wine, but could you imagine Burgundian winemakers in the 1800s hand picking each berry to get all the stems off? …

Process of fermentation the pulp from berries for cooking wine

What is Maceration?

Maceration is the process where the skins and juice hang out together after the crushing of wine grapes, and flavor compounds, tannins, and color compounds are leached into the must (juice). Generally speaking (there are always exceptions to the rules) red wines macerate until fermentation is complete.  Sometimes…

What is Inoculation?

To inoculate a wine is to add an active yeast culture to the must (juice) to activate fermentation. Winemakers choose certain known strains of yeasts to achieve desired results.  You may have heard the term ‘native yeasts’ used in the wine world at some point on your journey. …