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A Technical Guide for Wine Producers
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WHAT'S UP IN THE VINEYARD AND CELLAR
Cellar sanitation
Sanitation is a non-negotiable practice in a wine cellar. The nature of wine creates a microflora that, given favourable conditions, may not only be detrimental to the quality of the wine, but also have far-reaching financial consequences for the cellar. Consumers no longer simply accept the final product without further ado, instead they demand that cellars adhere to the required quality standards and that they use acceptable effective sanitation products.
World consumption of wine is expected to increase by 6.2% from 2004 to 2009, while the market value will increase by 10.9% over the same period. Market growth will therefore occur in the premium sector which requires that cellars implement the best process quality control and sanitation practices.
In the past cellars mostly used chlorine products for sanitation. This was followed by a citric acid solution, which neutralised the former. Barrels were usually cleaned by first rinsing them with low pressure water, whereafter a rotating spray ball was used to remove lees and tartaric acid crystals. As a result of the relationship between chlorine and TCA (2,4,6-trichloro anisole), which is associated with a mouldy character in wines, many cellars have switched to cleaning aids that do not contain any chlorine. Ozone water is one of the alternatives to consider. Ozone offers high sanitation quality, time and energy savings, as well as reducing the use of chemicals. Ozone, the most effective disinfectant available, is broken down to elementary oxygen, without leaving any harmful by-products. Ozone may be used to clean barrels, surfaces, equipment, tanks and CIP (Cleaning in Place) systems.
Standard practice when cleaning healthy barrels with ozone usually entails a high pressure rinse with warm water, followed by a 2.5 dpm ozone water solution for 2 minutes. The ozone treatment of barrels does not impact on the composition of flavourants extracted from the barrels. As a result of the positive effect of ozone treatment on barrels, the second-hand price of such barrels is also higher.
Although ozone is the most popular non-chlorine based cleaning aid for the initial sanitation of wine tanks, many cellars use it for the follow-up rinsing of tanks.
The highest risk for contamination of wine is during the transfer of wine between containers, therefore large cellars are compelled to install CIP pipelines. This entails cleaning and sanitation of pump systems, tanks, rubber hoses, filters and bottling lines. If soap, solutions and chemicals such as chlorine or iodaphore solutions are used, several rinsing actions with warm water and steam are required to remove all residue. This requires large volumes of water and moreover exposes employees to dangerous chemicals. The use of ozone in CIP systems reduces both these disadvantages.
Reference
Smith-McCollum, Bob. 2008. Clean technology for the wine industry. The Australian & New Zealand Grapegrower & Winemaker, January 2008: 79 - 80.
This article is also available on the website www.winebiz.com.au.
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