A winepress is a device used to extract juice from crushed

grapes A grape is a fruit, botanically a berry, of the deciduous woody vines of the flowering plant genus ''Vitis''. Grapes are a non- climacteric type of fruit, generally occurring in clusters. The cultivation of grapes began perhaps 8,000 years ago ...

during

wine making Winemaking or vinification is the production of wine, starting with the selection of the fruit, its fermentation into alcohol, and the bottling of the finished liquid. The history of wine-making stretches over millennia. The science of wine and w ...

. There are a number of different styles of presses that are used by wine makers but their overall functionality is the same. Each style of press exerts controlled pressure in order to free the juice from the fruit (most often grapes). The pressure must be controlled, especially with grapes, in order to avoid crushing the seeds and releasing a great deal of undesirable

tannins Tannins (or tannoids) are a class of astringent, polyphenolic biomolecules that bind to and precipitate proteins and various other organic compounds including amino acids and alkaloids. The term ''tannin'' (from Anglo-Norman ''tanner'', f ...

into the

wine Wine is an alcoholic drink typically made from fermented grapes. Yeast consumes the sugar in the grapes and converts it to ethanol and carbon dioxide, releasing heat in the process. Different varieties of grapes and strains of yeasts are m ...

. Wine was being made at least as long ago as 4000 BC; in 2011, a winepress was unearthed in Armenia with red wine dated 6,000 years old.

Press types

Basket

A basket press consists of a large basket filled with the crushed grapes. Pressure is applied through a plate that is forced down onto the fruit. The mechanism to lower the plate is often either a screw or a

hydraulic Hydraulics (from Greek: Υδραυλική) is a technology and applied science using engineering, chemistry, and other sciences involving the mechanical properties and use of liquids. At a very basic level, hydraulics is the liquid counter ...

device. The juice flows through openings in the basket. The basket style press was the first type of mechanized press to be developed, and its basic design has not changed in nearly 1000 years.

Horizontal screw

A horizontal screw press works using the same principle as the basket press. Instead of a plate being brought down to put pressure on the grapes, plates from either side of a closed cylinder are brought together to squeeze the grapes. Generally the volume of grapes handled is significantly greater than that of a basket press.

Bladder

A bladder press consists of a large cylinder, closed at each end, into which the fruit is loaded. To press the grapes, a large

bladder The urinary bladder, or simply bladder, is a hollow organ in humans and other vertebrates that stores urine from the kidneys before disposal by urination. In humans the bladder is a distensible organ that sits on the pelvic floor. Urine enters ...

expands and pushes the grapes against the sides. The juice then flows out through small openings in the cylinder. The cylinder rotates during the process to help homogenize the pressure that is placed on the grapes.

Continuous screw

A continuous screw press differs from the above presses in that it does not process a single batch of grapes at a time. Instead it uses an

Archimedes' screw The Archimedes screw, also known as the Archimedean screw, hydrodynamic screw, water screw or Egyptian screw, is one of the earliest hydraulic machines. Using Archimedes screws as water pumps (Archimedes screw pump (ASP) or screw pump) dates back ...

to continuously force grapes up against the wall of the device. Juice is extracted, and the

pomace Pomace ( ), or marc (; from French ''marc'' ), is the solid remains of grapes, olives, or other fruit after pressing for juice or oil. It contains the skins, pulp, seeds, and stems of the fruit. Grape pomace has traditionally been used to prod ...

continues through to the end where it is extracted. This style of press is rarely used to produce table wines, and some countries forbid its use for higher quality wines.

Flash release

Flash release is a technique used in winepressing. The technique allows for a better extraction of phenolic compounds.Effect of Flash Release Treatment on Phenolic Extraction and Wine Composition. Cécile Morel-Salmi, Jean-Marc Souquet, Magali Bes and Véronique Cheynier, J. Agric. Food Chem., 2006, 54 (12), pp. 4270–4276, .

Gallery

Image:MigdalHaemek5.jpg, Ancient winepress in

Israel Israel (; he, יִשְׂרָאֵל, ; ar, إِسْرَائِيل, ), officially the State of Israel ( he, מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל, label=none, translit=Medīnat Yīsrāʾēl; ), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated ...

with the pressing area in the center and the collection vat off to the bottom left. Image:Wine press-bladder.jpg, A bladder press Image:Must.jpg, Old style press in

Romania Romania ( ; ro, România ) is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern, and Southeast Europe, Southeastern Europe. It borders Bulgaria to the south, Ukraine to the north, Hungary to the west, S ...

for home-made wine Image:Torkelbaum.gif, Workings of a winepress (1700s in

Ravensburg Ravensburg ( Swabian: ''Raveschburg'') is a city in Upper Swabia in Southern Germany, capital of the district of Ravensburg, Baden-Württemberg. Ravensburg was first mentioned in 1088. In the Middle Ages, it was an Imperial Free City and an impo ...

, Germany) Image:Lagar de Santurnia.jpg, Remains of a medieval winepress in the

Rioja Alavesa Rioja Alavesa ( eu, Arabako Errioxa), officially Cuadrilla de Laguardia-Rioja Alavesa is one of seven ''comarcas'' that make up the province of Álava, Spain. It covers an area of 315.83 km² with a population of 11,360 people (2010). The capit ...

File:Wine press in Hurvat Itri.jpg, Ancient winepress carved into the ground at

Hurvat Itri Horvat 'Ethri ( he, חורבת עתרי; alt. spellings: Hurvat Itri, Ethri, Atari), Hebrew for "Ethri ruin", Arabic name: Umm Suweid ("mother of the buckthorns"), is an archaeological site situated in the Judean Lowlands in modern-day Israel. E ...

, Israel

References

{{Authority control Food technology Winemaking