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Red Wine is a type of wine made from dark-coloured grape varieties. The actual colour of the wine can range from intense violet, typical of young wines, through to brick red for mature wines and brown for older red wines. The juice from most purple grapes is greenish-white; the red colour comes from anthocyan pigments (also called anthocyanins) present in the skin of the grape. Much of the red-wine production process involves extraction of colour and flavour components from the grape skin.
The first step in red wine production, after picking, involves physical processing of the grapes. On arrival at the winery there is usually a mixture of individual berries, whole bunches, stems, and leaves. The presence of stems during fermentation can lead to a bitter taste in the wine, and the purpose of destemming is to separate grapes from the stems and leaves. After destemming, the grapes are commonly lightly crushed. The mixture of grapes, skins, juice and seeds is referred to as must. The must is then pumped to a vessel for fermentation.
Once the must is in a fermentation vessel, yeast naturally present on the skins of the grapes, or in the environment starts the alcoholic fermentation, in which sugars present in the must are converted into alcohol with carbon dioxide and heat as by-products. In some instances the fermentation process is controlled more closely by adding specially selected yeasts.
After the fermentation process has been completed the juice is extracted from grapes by pressing. This can be done with a wine press. Historically, intact grape clusters were trodden by feet.
Most red wine is aged for some period before bottling and this can vary from a few days to months. Aging can take place in stainless-steel or concrete tanks, or in small or large oak barrels. Most wines are filtered at some stage before bottling. Filtration serves to make wine completely clear and to eliminate any remaining yeast cells and bacteria. Wine is normally filled to glass bottles with cork stoppers.
The first step in red wine production, after picking, involves physical processing of the grapes. On arrival at the winery there is usually a mixture of individual berries, whole bunches, stems, and leaves. The presence of stems during fermentation can lead to a bitter taste in the wine, and the purpose of destemming is to separate grapes from the stems and leaves. After destemming, the grapes are commonly lightly crushed. The mixture of grapes, skins, juice and seeds is referred to as must. The must is then pumped to a vessel for fermentation.
Once the must is in a fermentation vessel, yeast naturally present on the skins of the grapes, or in the environment starts the alcoholic fermentation, in which sugars present in the must are converted into alcohol with carbon dioxide and heat as by-products. In some instances the fermentation process is controlled more closely by adding specially selected yeasts.
After the fermentation process has been completed the juice is extracted from grapes by pressing. This can be done with a wine press. Historically, intact grape clusters were trodden by feet.
Most red wine is aged for some period before bottling and this can vary from a few days to months. Aging can take place in stainless-steel or concrete tanks, or in small or large oak barrels. Most wines are filtered at some stage before bottling. Filtration serves to make wine completely clear and to eliminate any remaining yeast cells and bacteria. Wine is normally filled to glass bottles with cork stoppers.