From vine to wine

MANILA, Philippines -  Before that bottle of wine reaches your table, it goes through a centuries-old process that starts with a harvest of grapes from a vineyard hundreds of thousands of miles away. 

Winemaking is not just an art. It is an exact science that relies on timing and calculation and, of course, the winemaker’s creativity.  E & J Gallo Winery, the makers of Carlo Rossi Wines, the No. 1 bottled table wine in the world, has world-class winemakers around the globe who artfully create award-winning wines recognized by critics and consumers alike for their quality and value.

Wines are made from the fermented juice of grapes. And the highest quality fruit is produced when the vineyard is able to manage balanced growth. This also involves choosing the proper site and managing the vineyard all year round.

The grapes must be harvested at the right time, when the fruit reaches the right balance of sugar and acid for the particular wine it intends to bottle. Grapes picked too early will have too much acid. Grapes harvested too late will have too much sugar.  

Climate and temperature are also very important in determining the quality and balance of the grape’s components, including sugar, acid, tannin, color, pigments, flavor and aroma. California is one of the regions famous for growing grapes. The heating effect of the sun is moderated by the cooling impact of the ocean and the afternoon till nighttime fog, creating a “warm days –cool nights,” weather pattern. Under such conditions, grapes typically mature and ripen more slowly. This longer hang time produces fruit with more intense varietal character and complexity than fruit grown in warmer climes. In California, each year is considered a “vintage year.”          

By the time the grapes are harvested from the fields and transported to the winery, the growers have realized the full potential of the grape and thus, are able to supply the winemaker with the best raw material possible. Then the actual winemaking process begins.

First, the grapes are crushed and de-stemmed in order to burst the fruit and cause them to release their juice and separate the fruit from the stems.

After crushing and de-stemming, the juice from the grapes is put into the fermentation vats, where alcoholic fermentation or the conversion of sugar into alcohol and carbonic acid takes place. Fermentation is a natural biochemical process that involves the excretion of enzymes by yeast into equal amounts of alcohol and carbonic acid. Temperature is also very important in fermentation. Cooler temperatures during fermentation retain fresh varietal fruitiness while warmer temperatures result in less varietal fruitiness but a richer, rounder mouth-feel and body.

After fermentation, the wines are aged in either the steel vats, where flavors can be induced by the winemaker, or in the oak barrels, with natural flavor influence from the trees. After aging and prior to bottling, the wines are fined and filtered to help stabilize and clarify them.

Bottling or binning is the last stage, where the wines are bottled in a sterile environment and sealed.

It is important that the grapes be processed and manufactured at the same time they are harvested and picked, to assure that the antioxidants and the health benefits from the skin of the grapes are preserved.