Stomping Grapes
History of Stomping Grapes and Winemaking
Stomping grapes was the way people used to crush the grapes in order to make wine. This method has been used for hundreds of years, and today some wineries still use the stomping grapes method. However, many parts of the world have outlawed stomping grapes in the actual winemaking process because of the health implications.
Stomping grapes is a simple process that involves putting large quantities of grapes into a large, open container. People would then remove their shoes and socks and squish the grapes with their feet. This practice helped separate the grape guide from the grape skins. Many winemakers view this as the best way to crush grapes because the people doing the stomping can feel any lumps in the grapes. There are still a few winemakers in the world that use the stomping grapes method, and at least one winemaker even invented a machine that mimics the human stomping grapes method.
No one really knows where the idea of making wine came from, but it can be traced at least as far back as 6,000 B.C. in the Mesopotamia area. They were the first people known to cultivate grapes, although the exact method they used, if any, to actually make wine is unknown. It’s not until about 4,000 B.C. in Egypt when we have records of methods used in winemaking. Egyptians loved wine, and they used earthen pots to ferment the wine. However, it wasn’t until many years later when the Greeks perfected the pots actually used to make wine. The Greeks figured out a way to make the earthen pots so they could be sealed and completely airtight. They discovered that by sealing wine for a time, it would mature and become even better tasting.
The process of making wine today takes quite a long time. About two weeks passes between the actual crushing of the grapes and the end of the first stage. The first fermentation takes place during this time, and it’s not until the second stage of wine making that the juice actually becomes alcoholic.
There are three major types of wine today. The three kinds are red, white, and sparkling, and they get their names from their hue. Red wines are red of course, white wines are clear, and sparkling lines are clear and bubbly. Wines are also referred to as being either sweet or dry. Most people who don’t usually drink wine will opt for sweeter wines instead of dry wines. Sweet wines do have more sugar than dry wines because not all the grape sugar that’s in them is allowed to become alcoholic.
The wine’s bouquet, or smell, plays an important role in how the wine will taste. People who love their wines always smell the wine before they drink it. It’s also common for them to swirl the wine around in the glass to get a feel for the texture of it before they drink it. Different wineries use slightly different methods in creating their wines, so each wine tastes just a little bit different.