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Winemaking

How white wine is made

Pressing the juice off the skins before fermentation, then fermenting the clear juice.

Overview

White winemaking inverts the red sequence: pressing happens before fermentation rather than after. The juice is separated from skins and seeds early, which is why white wine has little tannin.

Because there is no skin contact to hide behind, white winemaking is more exposed. Oxidation, temperature and handling all show in the finished wine.

Most white wine can be made from black grapes, since the juice is pale — which is exactly how Blanc de Noirs Champagne works.

Step by step

  1. 1 Harvest

    Often picked at night or early morning in warm regions to keep the fruit cool and limit oxidation.

  2. 2 Pressing

    Whole bunches or destemmed berries are pressed gently. The first, gentlest fraction is the highest quality.

  3. 3 Settling

    Solids are allowed to settle out of the juice, or it is centrifuged, before fermentation.

  4. 4 Fermentation

    Usually at cool temperatures in stainless steel to preserve aromatics, or in barrel for fuller styles.

  5. 5 Malolactic conversion (optional)

    A decision rather than a given. Full conversion gives buttery Chardonnay; blocking it keeps the wine sharp and citrusy.

  6. 6 Lees ageing (optional)

    Time on spent yeast adds texture and a bready savouriness, with or without stirring.

  7. 7 Clarification and bottling

    Fining, filtration and stabilisation as required, then bottling.

Sources

Sources consulted

More in winemaking

Winemaking

Fermentation

Yeast converting sugar into alcohol and carbon dioxide — the step that makes wine wine.

Winemaking

How red wine is made

Fermenting grape juice in contact with the skins, which is where colour and tannin come from.

Winemaking

Oak ageing

What barrels actually do — flavour, texture, and slow oxygen exposure.