Bulk wine

Question 1

Sterile filtration before loading

Answer 1

Naked Wines, UK: sterile filters Malbec before bulk shipping to ensure stability. But has chosen to bottle at 1.2 micron instead of sterile because the wine is sugar and malic dry and in trial rated more highly than the same sterile filtered wine.

Question 2

SO2 addition before loading

Answer 2

Cline, Sonoma: 35 mg/L SO2 for tanker truck

Canandaigua Winery: 60 mg/L for rail car, 40-60 mg/L for flexitank

Question 3

Flushing headspace with N

Answer 3

Cline

Question 4

Confirming sanitation records of truck

Answer 4

Cline

Question 5

Transport methods (4)

Answer 5

Rail car

Flexitank

ISO tank

Portable tanks and barrels

Question 6

Rail car, pro/con

Answer 6

Pro: Lowest cost option for large volume continental. Entire car costs $4500-5000 USD for coast to coast travel in USA ($0.05/L) or about 25% of truck (according to Constellation Brands)

Con: No temperature control, must watch weather
Not suitable for most wineries, need a rail spur at facility. Not efficient for short trips.

Question 7

Rail car, example

Answer 7

E&J Gallo, Canandaigua Winery for entry level products

Question 8

Flexitank, pro (5)

Answer 8

Aapx $0.25/L according to Nova Cadametre MW

Low dissolved oxygen pick up due to vacuum state and gas barrier in plastic lining

Cannot be reused, low risk of microbial contamination due to poor sanitation

Large thermal mass keeps temperature buffered if shipped on cargo ship

Can be shipped on truck, rail, or ship

Question 9

Flexitank, con (4)

Answer 9

Concerns over weight on highway - full 24,000 L container is close to 60,000 lbs. California highway weight maximum is 80,000 lbs including truck.

Cannot be reused

Isolated load can chill or overheat on truck shipment

Potential flavor contamination from container through membrane

Question 10

ISO tank, pro (2)

Answer 10

• Reusable and multi-use (Hawke’s Bay Wine Co uses ISO tanks as in-winery portable tanks)
• Refrigeration available

Question 11

ISO tank, con (3)

Answer 11

Low availability due to ownership by a single company, never shipped empty

Potential for oxygen ingress if seal fails

Potential for spoilage due to poor sanitation

Question 12

Portable tanks and barrels, pro (3)

Answer 12

Can select exact vessel for volume

TranStore and barrels are multi-use and can be used again in winery

Small vessel means it can be transported in refrigerated truck

Question 13

Portable tanks and barrels, con (3)

Answer 13

High risk of DO pickup due to small vessel size

Low thermal mass means higher potential for temperature fluctuation

Barrels are not sanitizable

Question 14

Portable tanks and barrels, size

Answer 14

0-10,000 L

Question 15

Rail car, size

Answer 15

75,000-100,000 L

Question 16

Flexitank, size

Answer 16

10,000-24,000 L

Question 17

ISO tank, size

Answer 17

15,000-25,000 L