Issue link: http://winesandvines.uberflip.com/i/331901
48 W i n e s & V i n e s J U LY 2 0 1 4 our water and cleaning chemistry," Block says. "They are set up to clean the fixed- in-place pump-over lines as well as the tank," he adds. Be efficient with tank and barrel move- ments. Block says, "Wineries should think about the process steps they are using. The more racking in tank or barrel, the more cleaning that will be required." Other water-saving cellar tips: 4 Equip all water hoses with automatic shut-off valves and timers where appropriate. 4 Mix tanks with a Guth mixer, submers- ible pump or tank-top mixer, not a pump and hose setup. 4 Minimizing the length and diameter of hoses as appropriate will use less water in the sanitation phase. 4 If you use variable floating-top tanks, you have to move wine less for breakdowns. 4 Use the last rinse water from a tank as the primary wash on the next tank. Empty dirty water out into a sump and reuse for other tasks. Use ozone rinse water from tank cleaning as water for barrel cleaning. 4 Clean tanks in batches—or, at a mini- mum, use the rinse water from one as the cleaning water for the next. 4 Don't chase wine with water in hoses if you can: flush/push with gas and a PIG. Barrels "We were surprised by how much water it takes to wash a barrel," Zucker says. "About one-third of all the water we use at our Paso Robles winery goes to barrel washing." Employ high-pressure/low-flow spray heads and rinse with ozonated water. Zucker reports, "We also added timers to the ozone rinse system to avoid over-rins- ing through human error." Coordinate barrel emptying and filling work to reduce the amount of time that barrels are empty. Freshly emptied barrels won't dry up and have to be swelled up with water again. Other water-saving tips for barrels: 4 Use a self-contained barrel washer like those available from Tom Beard Co. 4 Soak heads separately by flipping end to end; don't necessarily fill barrels up to the top. 4 Use rinse water from one barrel to do initial cleaning of the next. Filtration and bottling Analyze filter usage. Calculate what you —From Our Table To Y ours— Meet California's fascinating family-owned wineries, hear their stories, taste their wines, share with your family and friends. To attend: www.familywinemakers.org Family Winemakers of California Tasting August 17, 2014 San Mateo Event Center Wines & Vines half page island — 4 3/4 x 7.5 5/14/14 Barrel washers from the Tom Beard Co. are programmable to minimize water use. (Continued on page 51.) G R A P E G R O W I N G W I N E M A K I N G