How does it work?

1. FILLING
AND CAVITY SATURATION

Filling can be performed either from above, or from the total discharge valve or from the partial discharge valve.

During the rising of the must, the cavity between the outer casing and the funnel diaphragm remains empty because the air, unable to escape through the closed bypass, prevents the cavity from being filled. The grape marcs accumulate on the surface to create the cap.

The carbon dioxide produced by the fermentation process quickly takes the place of the air in the cavity.

As soon as the environment is saturated, the exceeding gas goes out by overflowing and since it is under pressure it creates large bubbles through the diaphragm neck, resulting in a constant restirring of the grape marcs that will always be saturated with the liquid and well shelled. Such restirring causes the fall of the grape seeds to the bottom by gravity.

2. BYPASS OPENING

The opening of the bypass causes a more massive action, releasing an enormous amount of gas accumulated in the cavity directly on the grape marcs, which are flooded and deeply re-stirred, resulting in an effective yet smooth breakdown of the cap, preventing mechanical actions that may lead to the forming of lees.

Watch the action of the bypass opening as seen from the upper cover

Once the grape-seeds have emerged, they accumulate in large amounts on the bottom of the fermenter. It is at this stage that the winemaker, according to his evaluations and the characteristics of grape-seeds, may decide to exclude them from the winemaking process, by extracting them in large amounts through the total discharge valve.

Watch the grape seeds video

3. DÉLESTAGE

As soon as the gas goes out, the cavity is flooded with the must, causing a sudden lowering of the level.

The grape marcs saturated with liquid continue to release noble substances extracted from the skins; thus, repeating the typical stage of static draining DÉLESTAGE, in a controlled environment and without the use of pumps.

As soon as all the gas goes out, the cavity is flooded with the must causing a sudden lowering of the level.

Watch the délestage video

4. LEACHING AND
STATIC DRAINING

Once the bypass is closed, the carbon dioxide from the fermentation process re-accumulates in the cavity causing a new rising of the level, which, by pushing upward the grape marcs collected on the surface, results in a further stage of static draining that continues the leaching process and allows the grape marcs to release an increasing quantity of substances into the must.

The gas saturates the cavity once again and the whole sequence can be repeated whenever it is deemed appropriate.

Watch the video showing the bubbles in action