BY ERIN DONNELLY (UPDATED BY DENISE M. GARDNER)
Distillation
for Faulted Wines
Winemaking missteps can have spirited results
Photo: Thinkstock
he overall quality of a wine is the sum
of each step in the process. Should a
miscalculation or misstep occur along
the production line, the final beverage can
be negatively affected. Some production
decisions can result in wine faults, which
decrease the quality of wine and the
degree to which it will be enjoyed by the
consumer. While there are several ways
to remediate these faults, one option
is to perform distillation of the flawed
wine into a high-proof spirit.
Distillation is a controlled process
by which a low-proof alcoholic bever-
age is heated to separate ethanol from
water and other components (such as
organic acids or flavor compounds) with
the ultimate goal of concentrating the
ethanol into a high-proof spirit. Prior to
distillation, wine is fermented by yeast
and alcoholic strength is typically kept
low. Upon completion of fermentation, the
wine is then transferred to a still where a heat
source is applied.
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