Chapter 4 - Pressing Matters

It was the first thing I saw when entering the bodega: a gigantic wooden basket press looming over the amphoras and barrels, raised on a platform in the middle of the winery. The press is entirely operated by human force: the basket is filled with grapes and by moving a large lever back and forth, wooden pieces press the grapes gently down, and the juice escapes through the narrow slits in the basket before it is captured in the large sink underneath. It then travels by gravity to the fermentation vessels one floor down. 

Using a basket press is notoriously inefficient. It takes a long time to set everything up, it takes hard physical work to load the press, getting it to press is a literal tour de force and a basket press never squeezes out all the juice. But it is the most gentle way of pressing grapes, extracting the finest elements only and avoiding any nasty and unwanted elements ending up in the wine. It is a philosophical choice as much as a practical one.  

“Climb in the press”, Leo demanded. I monkeyed my way up alongside the thick iron staves, and let myself sink into the crushed grapes. With every step, juice started flowing through the basket. The bodega was full of energy: people foot treading grapes, people scooping crushed grapes into the basket press, me stomping grapes in the press. We were all dancing in sync to the Chilean music blasting through the bodega.

Given time, warmth and a little alcohol, most people tend to soften and open up. The same goes for grapes. Especially grapes from old dry-farmed vines that are notoriously thick skinned. The bunches typically have small berries and the ratio skin/flesh is higher than conventionally grown grapes - this partly explains why wines from old vines have such intensity and vibrancy. This also means they are tough to press, especially when no machines are used. That is why traditionally in Itata, Moscatel grapes are left to ferment as whole berries. A human crushes the grapes with their feet until a little bit of juice shows and the fermentation can start with skins and all in the tank. During fermentation, the berries burst and their skins soften. The resulting paste is put in the basket press and the remaining juice is easily squeezed out. This effectively results in an orange wine because the aromas and tannins of the Moscatel skins have been seeping into the wine during fermentation. In Itata, orange wine is a matter of practicality, not a hipster hype. 

Making wine is hard, so when winemakers deliberately forego tools that make their lives easier (such as, electricity), there surely must be good reasons. For Leo that reason is simple: great wines cannot be forced. They can only be gently uncovered, by handling each vine with respect, each bunch with love and every drop with care. 

Six hours later, my legs were stained purple, my bikini was ruined and the press had yielded less juice than any modern machine would have. But what it did give was so much better.