Wine 101: How It’s Made

Whether it’s the grapes, the climate, the place, or something else, no two wines are the same. The way most wines are made share quite a few similarities: grapes grow; they’re harvested; they’re crushed for juice; the juice is fermented; the wine ages; and the wine goes into a bottle. Some differences exist, especially for making sparkling wines and some sweet or dessert wines. So, in this session of Wine 101, we’ll mostly be talking about how dry and still wines are made. When needed, we’ll point out the differences between how red wines are treated versus white wines are treated at different points in winemaking.

Harvesting

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Before any fermenting happens, or before the wine goes into a barrel or a bottle, the grapes have to be picked. In an ideal growing season, the grapes have plenty of sun and not too much rain -- conditions which will produce grapes that are just ripe enough. Then, depending on where and by whom, those grapes are usually harvested either by hand or with machines. Next, grapes go to the sorting table, which looks at their very character and assigns them to their tank is where debris and damaged fruit are removed. Afterwards, the grapes might be crushed in order for their skins to be removed -- this step is optional for white wines, but almost always done for reds, because the skins are needed for a red wine to get its colors and tannins. Finally, a pressing step happens, where grapes, either with or without their skins, go into a machine and are pressed for their juice, which is called the must.

Fermentation

If you’re making a white wine, congratulations! You now, more or less, get to move onto fermentation; however, before red wines can begin fermentation, they begin a step called maceration. During maceration, which a winemaker can start before or at fermentation, the grape skins and grape must are kept in contact with each other, which gives red wine its color.

Once the winemaker determines the must is ready, controlled fermentation can begin. I say “controlled,” because natural yeast is all over the place, and from the moment juice is squeezed out of the grapes, it’s possible some sort of yeast has begun turning sugar into alcohol. To stop this, winemakers can add some sulfur to the must, which will kill off any native yeasts which are present. In most cases, winemakers will do just that, and pitch commercially available yeasts -- which result in more predictable wines -- into the must, and fermentation can begin in earnest. Assuming good fermentation conditions are kept, the yeast in the must will continue turning sugar into wine for anywhere from a few days to several weeks. When the alcohol content of the liquid gets to around 14%, the yeast can no longer survive, the sugar is largely exhausted, and the tank is officially full of wine!

Into the Barrel (and the Bottle)

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After fermentation has finished, some wines -- especially heavier white wines like Sauvignon Blanc and Chardonnay, and many red wines -- will go into oak barrels for aging. Depending on the style of wine, the type of barrel can vary: some wines will go into new oak barrels, which can impart flavors of vanilla, cedar, or toast into the wines; some will go into older or more “neutral” oak barrels, which won’t do much in terms of adding flavor to the wine. In red wines, oak aging can be especially important, because it helps smooth out wines that may have harsher tannins. How long the wine spends in a barrel depends on the style of wine being made: some red wines will spend years in oak barrels.

Before being bottled, some wines -- those that aren’t made of a single grape variety -- will be blended with wines made from other grapes. This is done because mixing of wines made from different grapes can help add depth or balance out a wine -- maybe the winemaker wants to balance out the tannins from this wine; or add the fruity flavors found in another wine. Bordeaux wine, which is made in France, is a famous style of blended wine.

After the winemaker decides the wine is ready, and -- more or less -- tastes good or “right,” the wine is bottled, and stored until it’s shipped to be sold. Finally, the best part happens: you buy a bottle, open it, and enjoy it.

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