Tin Lizzie Wineworks

Discover the Magic of Making Wine

      Home  I   About Us   I   Winemaking Options   I   The Process   I   Pricing   I   Pictures   I   FAQ   I   Contact Us

Make your own
premium quality wines

Fully-equipped
winemaking
facility

Award-winning
 UC Davis-trained
winemaker on staff

Conveniently located
between Baltimore & DC
in Clarksville, MD

Beautiful
agricultural setting
 

 

 

 

 

  

The Winemaking Process

Session 1 - Crush and Ferment (About 1˝ hours)
When the fresh wine grapes arrive in the spring or fall, you’ll learn to de-stem and crush the grapes using our motorized de-stemmer/crusher.  This machine separates the grapes (berries) from the stems, gently crushes them and pumps the “must” (crushed berries) into a fermentation tank. You’ll learn about testing and adjusting the must.  Then you’ll select and add a specialized wine yeast from our collection to begin fermentation, the process of transforming grapes into wine.

Session 2:        Press and Barrel (About 1˝ hours)

 About 7 to 10 days later you’ll return when fermentation is almost complete.  You’ll use a wine press to separate the new wine from the grape skins, and then transfer the wine to oak barrels.  The barrels will then be transferred into a climate-controlled barrel room for aging.

Session 3:        Rack and Taste (About 1˝ hours)

Around four months later, you’ll return to remove the sediment (lees) from your wine by “racking,” which is pumping your wine from the old barrel to a clean barrel and leaving behind the sediment.  This is an exciting time because you’ll get the first chance to taste your young wine.  Finally, you’ll “top” the barrels with wine and return them to the barrel room for additional aging.

Session 4:        Bottle and Label (About 1˝ hours)

It’s time!  After about a year you’ll return to bottle, cork and capsule your new wine and affix your custom labels.  Your hand-crafted wine is now ready to bring home and enjoy with your family and friends.  Just remember, many wines improve with aging in the bottle…if you can resist drinking it!