WHAT IS WINE?

Wine is the end result of the alcoholic fermentation of the grape juice or must.

QUALITY FACTORS
Being a natural product, wine depends in certain conditions to be able to be a product of quality.

Important Factors for a quality wine:

Geographical location of the vineyard.
Climate and microclimate
1)Frost. - will kill the small vine buds.
2)Strong winds. - Can destroy the buds and prevent pollination when grapevine is in bloom.
3)Hail. - will destroy the grapevine leaves.
4)Rain. - During summer can help in the development of a plague or disease.
5)Intense sunshine. - can burn the grapes.
Type of soil
Wine production method.

Phases of Wine production method
Strip
It is done before the squeezing to deprive the fruit from its branches.

Fruit Squeezing
Consist on the application of certain pressure to the grapes so they can brake and release their juice.

Fermentation
After the Squeezing, must is obtained, this is deposited in wood or stainless steel containers, where glucose or natural sugar is transformed into alcohol by the action of yeast, this is the most important biochemical process during the wine production.
This fermentation needs to be done in the adequate temperature which is between 15 to 25 degrees Celsius (59-77 Fahrenheit) for about one to three weeks depending on the type of wine that is desired.

Racking
Is the process of emptying and raking wine from the original deposit to another one once the fermentation is done in order to start the clarification process.

Clarification
This process is used to obtain a wine of perfect appearance, eliminating the suspended particles and making a more stabilized wine, there is one natural way of clarification which is sedimentation, but it is very slow. To help wine do this process in a shorter time some products are added which are capable of coagulating with wine and making crumbs that have a faster sedimentation. The main clarification products used are gelatin, egg whites, sodium alginate and bentonite; in a moderate way filtration is also utilized, it consists is letting the wine pass trough a filter of very fine pores.

Bottling
The bottle, especially if the cork is of good quality, is the best way to present wines, because it guarantees the origin and the quality that the winemaker wanted to give to the product. In the modern world the bottling process is made in an automated way, without the wine having to have contact with air when it passes from the barrels to the bottle.

Fortification and Aging
It consist in a process somehow long, were the wine is in repose in order to get the blend and maturity desired, so it can be ready to be commercialized.

Production Process

White Wines:
-Pressed Strip
-Fermentation
-Clarification, Racking or Filtering
-Fortification and Aging
-Bottling, Tagging and corking

Red Wines:
-Strip
-Fruit Squeezing
-Fermentation
-Maceration and Soaring
-Press
-Clarification, Racking or Filtering
-Fortification and Aging
-Bottling, Tagging and corking

Champagne :
-Press
-Separated Fermentation of grapes
-Mix -Bottling
-Adding of special syrup (second fermentation)
-Riddled
-Bottle neck frozen, lees are forced out of the bottle and ice is cut. -Adding secret recipe liquor
-Corking and tagging.