What does délestage mean and what benefit does it have for high quality wines?

With this blog, we want to explain the term "delestage," with which perhaps wine lovers who have not received sommelier training may not be familiar.

It is a term that appears in the technical sheets of the Tenute Sella winery, specifically the wines Lessona (standard version and upgrade versions) and Bramaterra (again here standard version and upgrade versions).

To see the sheets for all Lessona and Bramattera wines, it is best to select Tenute Sella in the search function and you will see all the wines.

To the point: what does délestage mean and how does it benefit the final result.

Délestage wine: meaning

The term délestage comes from French and literally means emptying.

What does délestage mean in wine? In the oenological context, the term délestagerefers to a technique for processing the must during alcoholic fermentation , mainly used for the production of red wines. The purpose of this process is to facilitate the extraction of polyphenols, dyes and other soluble substances from the grape skins, as well as their diffusion into the must wine.

The délestage process

Délestage in wine is a delicate and precise process that, to be effective, requires special care and attention in its execution.

Before describing in detail the various steps involved in this technique, let us briefly describe the process from a general perspective.

The délestage technique can be applied after the formation of the cap of the marc (i.e., when, during the fermentation phase, the marc and solid parts begin to float to the surface and form a barrier between the liquid part and the oxygen present in the air) and involves temporarily separating the must wine from the marc (which forms the cap). In this way, the liquid part comes into contact with the oxygen (from which it was previously protected by the cap), while the trot sinks to the bottom and compresses further. Finally, the liquid part is poured back into the tank along with the trot, so that it is evenly distributed in the must wine.

As we have already mentioned, this process allows for greater extraction of dyes and polyphenols from the solid parts, as well as better alcoholic fermentation and oxygenation of the must.

The 5 steps

Now that we have a general idea of what délesage is, let's look at the different steps of the process one by one, in more detail and precision.

1. The formation of the marc cap:

Délestage can be carried out in the early stages of alcoholic fermentation, once the cap of the marc is formed. The so-called cap is formed by carbon dioxide pushing up the grape skins, causing them to float to the surface. This creates a kind of protective barrier between the liquid part and the oxygen.

The skins in contact with oxygen tend to dry out or, in the worst case, rot. Therefore, at this point it is necessary to take action, either with the délestage technique or with the more traditional overpumping. Below we will see how to proceed with délestage.

Draining the must:

During délestage, the tank is emptied of the must, which is temporarily transferred to a second tank.

This is done by special means such as pumps and pipes. During this step, the must is well aerated and oxygenated.

An essential part of this is siphoning off the part of the must that is in direct contact with the cap of the grape marc. Oxygenating this part of the must is very important indeed, because this is where the highest concentration of polyphenols is located.

Grape marc breakdown:

After pouring the must into another container, the solids that previously formed the cap at the top fall to the bottom of the container.

The cap now at the bottom should continue to drip throughout the separation time: this is where most of the colorants, tannins and polysaccharides are located.

Reintegrating the must:

At the end of the separation period, which usually lasts several hours, the previously extracted must is carefully reunited with the skins, which in the meantime have softened and released their valuable components.

The jet used to reintroduce the must into the original tank must necessarily be under low pressure. In addition, the jet must have a high flow rate to help the cap break down and mix well with the must.

Rising of the trotter cap:

Finally, the draff cap rises back up to the surface of the must, stimulating exchange between the various components.

Depending on the producer's choice, the délestage technique can be performed every day or every other day, or once or twice within a single day. Generally, the total time ranges from 5 days to a week.

Thanks to the délesage technique, the pouring cap is fully utilized and the exchange between the liquid and solid parts is facilitated. For someone who wants to make his or her own wine at home, this technique can be complex because the equipment for sale is usually large, designed for larger productions. However, it is not impossible to perform délestage even at home.

What are the benefits of wine délestage?

Finally, let's take a closer look at the benefits of this technique.

The practice of délestage, mainly used for vinification of red wines, offers several advantages, including:

1.Greater extraction: délestage promotes greater extraction of color, tannins and aromatic compounds from the trot, giving the wine a fuller and more complex structure, as well as a more stable and uniform color.

2.The renewal of the surface of the exchange:

Again, the part of the must directly under the trotter cap can renew its exchange surface.

3.Controlled oxygenation:

Natural aeration during the délestage process improves fermentation and contributes to the stability of the wine.

Délestage is a valuable oenological process used with care and precision to obtain structured and aromatically complex red wines. With a well-controlled process and proper timing, this technique can enhance the grape's unique characteristics and give the wine a distinctive personality. Winemakers using this technique continue to make delicious, high-quality wines.

Discover more about Tenute Sella and its historical evolution from 1671 to the present: Tenute Sella