Page 13 - GrapevineMarApr 2022

In The Winery

process, from the grape skins to the barrels. It can
be challenging to control or eradicate because it
grows into the barrel wood and becomes hidden.
Brettanomyces seldom reveal themselves during
the fermentation process but rather prefer to flour-
ish during aging. Some winemakers claim that a
low level of Brettanomyces can give wine desirable
characteristics, but any more than that will ruin the
whole batch.

In-barrel wine spoilage and short barrel life are
problems facing the wine industry. Under the best
conditions, wine barrels require a routine mainte-
nance regimen to control taste- and aroma-fouling
bacteria in affected barrels and keep them from
taking over new, unaffected barrels.

Steamericas:
Blending Science With a gallon of water per barrel in the entire sanitation
Eco-friendly Process process. Using dry steam is the quickest and most
thorough way to sanitize a barrel, and it’s also a
“Winemakers should clean and sanitize their popular method to swell or rehydrate wooden bar-
barrels absolutely after every use,” said Yujin Yoo rels for not only wineries but also breweries and
Anderson, General Manager of Steamericas. “By distilleries.”
sanitizing with a dry steam process, you can simul-
taneously sanitize and hydrate them to prepare Anderson said that Steamericas’ Optima steamer
them for their next use. The same goes for brewer- uses only about a half-gallon of water to rehydrate
ies and distilleries when hydrating vats or foeders and sanitize a barrel, and it accomplishes this in
before filling them.” just a matter of minutes. The lack of wastewater
production and the elimination of chemicals allow
Anderson told The Grapevine Magazine that there wineries to comply with the Clean Water Act.
are many reasons that a sanitation program using
dry steam is preferable over the lesser effective tra- “The biggest challenge of using dry steam for your
ditional methods. sanitation process is the upfront investment along
with having enough power source,” said Anderson.
“The eco-friendliness aspect is always a priori- “We typically recommend an 18kW steamer or
ty,” said Anderson. “But ultimately, science has higher for winery applications, requiring a three-
taught us that high heat effectively kills unwanted phase power with preferably 480V. Wineries
organisms. Dry steam, a gaseous state of boiled with 208-230V will need much more amperage.
water above 212 degrees Fahrenheit, can pene- This type of investment may not make sense for
trate barrel’s staves up to eight to nine millimeters a micro-winery with lower production rates and
depth and deliver high enough heat to remove no bottling line. But to help offset the cost, a dry
Brettanomyces, which grows into the wood and is steamer with the proper accessories can serve as a
particularly hard to remove using other traditional winery and vineyard pressure washer without the
cleaning methods. Additionally, there are quan- wastewater runoff to clean equipment, fermenta-
tifiable operational benefits to using dry steam tion tanks, floors and facilities, and whatever else
sanitation for your barrels as well. Less water use needs a thorough cleaning.”
means less time filling the barrels and less water
and treatment costs. Dry steam uses as little as half Steamericas’ Optima steamer can be used as a

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