Summary
A winery is a building or property that produces wine, or a business involved in the production of wine, such as a . Some wine companies own many wineries. Besides wine making equipment, larger wineries may also feature warehouses, bottling lines, laboratories, and large expanses of tanks known as tank farms. Wineries may have existed as long as 8,000 years ago. The earliest known evidence of winemaking at a relatively large scale, if not evidence of actual wineries, has been found in the Middle East. In 2011 a team of archaeologists discovered a 6000 year old wine press in a cave in the Areni region of Armenia, and identified the site as a small winery. Previously, in the northern Zagros Mountains in Iran, jars over 7000 years old were discovered to contain tartaric acid crystals (a chemical marker of wine), providing evidence of winemaking in that region. Archaeological excavations in the southern Georgian region of Kvemo Kartli uncovered evidence of wine-making equipment (containers called qvevri) dating back 8000 years. In 2017 the remnants of an 8000-year-old facility for large-scale production was found 20 miles south of Tbilisi, Georgia. Wineries typically employ winemakers to produce various wines from grapes by following the winemaking process. This process involves the fermentation of fruit, as well as blending and aging of the juice. The grapes may be from vineyards owned by the winery or may be brought in from other locations. Many wineries also give tours and have cellar doors or tasting rooms where customers can taste wines before they make a purchase. Winery architecture is very varied and rich and it is used by wineries as a way to promote their wines and cellar doors. While some associate wineries with large winemaking regions such as Napa Valley and Sonoma Valley in California, the Barossa Valley in Australia or the legendary wine regions of France (Bordeaux, Burgundy, Champagne) and Italy, wineries can be found nearly everywhere.
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Related concepts (7)
Burgundy wine
Burgundy wine (Bourgogne or vin de Bourgogne) is made in the Burgundy region of eastern France, in the valleys and slopes west of the Saône, a tributary of the Rhône. The most famous wines produced here, and those commonly referred to as "Burgundies," are dry red wines made from pinot noir grapes and white wines made from chardonnay grapes. Red and white wines are also made from other grape varieties, such as gamay and aligoté, respectively. Small amounts of rosé and sparkling wines are also produced in the region.
Winemaker
A winemaker or vintner is a person engaged in winemaking. They are generally employed by wineries or , where their work includes: Cooperating with viticulturists Monitoring the maturity of grapes to ensure their quality and to determine the correct time for harvest Crushing and pressing grapes Monitoring the settling of juice and the fermentation of grape material Filtering the wine to remove remaining solids Testing the quality of wine by tasting Placing filtered wine in casks or tanks for storage and maturation Preparing plans for bottling wine once it has matured Making sure that quality is maintained when the wine is bottled Today, these duties require an increasing amount of scientific knowledge, since laboratory tests are gradually supplementing or replacing traditional methods.
American Viticultural Area
An American Viticultural Area (AVA) is a designated wine grape-growing region in the United States, providing an official appellation for the mutual benefit of wineries and consumers. Winemakers frequently want their consumers to know about the geographic pedigree of their wines, as wines from a particular area can possess distinctive characteristics. Consumers often seek out wines from specific AVAs, and certain wines of particular pedigrees can claim premium prices and loyal customers.
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