What is delestage?

What is delestage?

• A. Moving wine between vessels
• B. Fining with egg white
• C. Draining the fermentation vessel completely and then pouring back over the cap
• D. Pumping over the cap

Answer: (C)

Delestage is a cap-management method where you drain the entire fermenting vessel and then pour the wine back over the solid grape cap. By removing all juice first, you can separate some tannins and then re-wet the cap with fresh juice as you return it, promoting more controlled extraction. Gravity or a siphon is typically used to pour the liquid back over the cap, helping to refresh contact, manage heat, and avoid over-extraction. This differs from pumping over, which continuously circulates juice from below onto the cap without first draining the tank; fining with egg white is a clarification step, and moving wine between vessels is not about re-wetting the cap.

Delestage is a cap-management method where you drain the entire fermenting vessel and then pour the wine back over the solid grape cap. By removing all juice first, you can separate some tannins and then re-wet the cap with fresh juice as you return it, promoting more controlled extraction. Gravity or a siphon is typically used to pour the liquid back over the cap, helping to refresh contact, manage heat, and avoid over-extraction. This differs from pumping over, which continuously circulates juice from below onto the cap without first draining the tank; fining with egg white is a clarification step, and moving wine between vessels is not about re-wetting the cap.