How is Red Wine Made?

The answer is quite simple: red wine is made from red grapes.

It is the maceration of the skins in the fermenting juice that gives the wine its red colour. But then why are there so many shades of colour between the different red wines?

There are two main reasons:

1. The grape variety is decisive! Some grapes have a skin with a richer tinting strength. (Pinot Noir or Grenache give wines with little colour, unlike Syrah or Cabernet Sauvignon, or even Mourvèdre, which produce darker wines).
2. The method of vinification which can influence the intensity of the colouring. Indeed, the stronger the extraction, the more intense the colour. It is the skins of the red grapes that give the red wine its colour during maceration. (Unlike white wine production, where the juice does not remain in contact with the skin and seeds). After this maceration period of one to four months, the juice will be extracted and fermentation can begin. It is therefore important to understand the stages of winemaking which, depending on the method and style chosen, can significantly influence the colour of red wine. We tell you everything you need to know!

Alcoholic fermentation begins and lasts for an average of four to ten days. During fermentation in vats, yeasts convert sugars into alcohol and carbon dioxide. The latter escapes to the top of the vat, carrying with it solid particles (skin, seeds and pieces of pulp) that form what is known as the cap above the fermenting juice. This famous cap contains several elements that are of interest to us, as they will give the wine its colour, including tannins, pigments and aromas.

Gradually, these coloured pigments, known as anthocyanins, diffuse into the fermenting must. Depending on the type of red wine desired, maceration will be more or less prolonged. Red wines intended for ageing, for example, require longer maceration in order to obtain a good structure and ageing potential. Their colour is then more intense.

In order to favour the extraction of the colour, tannins and aromatic compounds contained in the coatings, it is necessary to make sure that the solid and liquid parts are mixed regularly. There are several operations.

1. Pumping-over: in order to extract the solid parts and recover them in the wine, we will work on the pomace cap. To do this, the fermenting juice is pumped upwards in order to water and aerate the wine to increase the effects of the yeast.
2. Punching of the cap: another technique, this consists of gently pushing the pomace cap into the juice to develop the fruit and reduce the tannins.
3. Filling: after fermentation, the juice flows from the bottom of the fermentation vat to another vat. The wine is separated by gravity from the pomace (all the solid parts of the grape: stalks, skins, pips, still impregnated with alcohol). The wine that runs off is called "vin de goutte" (free-run wine).
4. Pressing: the skins and pips recovered from the vat go to the press to remove the wine soaked into them. This pressing makes the "press wine" richer in colour and tannins. Depending on the type of wine required, the latter is reintegrated into the «free-run wine» for a second fermentation called malolactic fermentation. It naturally reduces the acidity of the wine and gives it more roundness.
5. Maturation: the wine is then stored in barrels or in another vat for two or three seasons during which it will develop. The choice of these containers is crucial as it determines whether the wines will simply oxygenate or be marked by the taste of the wood. In oak barrels, there is an exchange of aromatic and gustatory substances from the wood to the wine. Micro-oxygenation provides a supply of oxygen which stabilises the colour of the wine.
6. Blending: For the balance and complexity of the finished product, several cuvées from different plots, or from different grape varieties (when it is not a single-varietal wine) are assembled.
7. Fining or Filtering: the winegrower can also choose to make their wine brighter, by fining (adding egg white), and clearer, by filtering (which stabilises the wine).
8. Bottling: this stage completes the maturation process for marketing the product.