The harvesting of the grapes as well as their sorting, which is done bunch by bunch, are carried out by the people who work on the estate using the manual method.

The harvest process begins at the end of August and ends in mid-October with the last vines, whose maturation requires more days than other types.

Harvest of white grapes

It is often said that “a white wine without aroma has nothing.” When we say aroma in this case, we mean mainly the aroma of the grapes and not the secondary aroma that develops during a healthy alcoholic fermentation. Secondary aroma alone is not enough for a quality white wine.

A necessary condition is, therefore, that the harvesting of the white grapes takes place at the right moment of maturity that coincides with the existence of a strong aroma. The right time is found before the grapes are fully ripe.

In addition to the aroma, the healthy state of the grape significantly affects the quality of the wine produced.

The white grapes must be harvested and transported to the winery carefully and without inconvenience, so that they remain intact. Harvesting in small boxes helps to avoid premature pressing and extraction of the components of the solid parts of the grape, which is undesirable in the production of quality white wines.

Afterwards, the bunch and the rack are separated so that the fermentation takes place for about 10–15 days while it is stored in special tanks.

For the locals, in Petrochori, the harvest is a kind of ritual, organizing many different events to celebrate the annual production of grapes at the end of September.

Harvest of white grapes
The white grapes must be harvested and transported to the winery carefully and without inconvenience, so that they remain intact. Harvesting in small boxes helps to avoid premature pressing and extraction of the components of the solid parts of the grape, which is undesirable in the production of quality white wines.

Depression of the rails
The purpose of pressing the grapes is, as in red winemaking, to break the skin of the grapes and release the flesh and juice.
In white vinification, the pressing of the lees is not accompanied by the removal of the lees and is carried out as gently as possible, increasing the distance between the grooved cylinders of the press.

Separation (draining) of the must from the stems
The purpose of the draining or separation is to receive the must that has been released during the pressing of the rails.

Pressure of the pistons
The purpose of the pressure is to extract the remaining must from the grape mass, which has already been pressed and drained.
The pressure is carried out by the presses.

Alcoholic fermentation of the must
A key quality characteristic of white wines is their aroma. This is made up of the aroma of the raw material and the secondary aroma formed during alcoholic fermentation. It is therefore obvious that the production of good-quality wines requires the alcoholic fermentation to be carried out in such conditions as to ensure the greatest possible aroma.

Pressing the grapes
Crushing is the breaking of the skins, so the juice in the pulp cells of the flesh is released and comes into contact with the solid parts of the grape and with the spores of yeasts and bacteria that settle on the skin.

Transfer of the grape mass
After the grapes are pressed, the staphylomaza we get is transferred to the vinification tanks or the winemakers with or without the bostriches, depending on the method of pressing carried out.
The transfer is carried out with the help of a special pump that is actually called a vintage pump to distinguish it from the other pumps in the winery.

Alcoholic fermentation – extraction
During alcoholic fermentation, the sugars in the grape juice are degraded, forming ethyl alcohol, carbon dioxide, and small amounts of a large number of other substances called secondary products of alcoholic fermentation.
The second phenomenon of this stage, which is the extraction of the components of the solid parts of the grape, is affected by the conditions that prevail during its performance.

Separation of the must from the marc
Depending on the type of wine to be produced from a particular variety, the must is separated from the grapes and transferred to tanks, where alcoholic fermentation takes place at low temperatures.
The outflow wine produced from the fermentation of these musts is transferred to the tanks for the residence and processing of the wines.
The transport of both musts and wines is done by pipelines.

Removal of stem cells from tanks
The punches are emptied directly into the press if it is mobile or transferred to it by various means.

Pressure of the pistons
After the fermented must or wine has flowed off, the lees still hold a percentage that is picked up by gentle pressure.