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WINERY & VINEYARD EQUIPMENT August 2016 WINES&VINES 59 Invented by Don Othman in 1986, gas pressure racking wands inject nitrogen into a barrel to pressurize it and force the wine out through the wand into transfer hoses. Othman's "Bulldog Pup" is credited with helping to greatly enhance the quality of American Pinot Noir, and in the years since its invention several other wands have come onto the market. Most wands can also fit kegs for topping. Pioneers in Polyethylene for Wine 25 Years of Experience Thousands of Tanks in Use 208-549-1861 • www.pascopoly.com Tanks 225 to 4500 Gallons QUALITY WINE ALWAYS TOP PRIORITY KiLR-CHiLR ™ Temp Control managed white wine fermentation, storage, and stabilization patented St. Regulus Automatic Fermentor patented managed red wine fermentation, self-pressing unique features that earned it a U.S. patent. It's called the Rack-it-Teer. "What sets the Rack-it-Teer apart is that it features a cam lock on the bung to make secur- ing it in the barrel quick and easy," Pratt said. "The bung can also be equipped with optional locking fingers to provide even more stability." Even though he first started working on the wand for the b r e w e r y, w h e n h i s w i n e r y friends heard he was working on a racking wand they started offering suggestions. "We de- signed this for the brewing in- dustry, and then a bunch of g u y s i n t h e w i n e i n d u s t r y wanted one," he said. One winemaker suggested adding a flashlight holder near the sight glass, while another suggested a lees cup. The lees cup is at the end of the racking wand and helps keep lees sepa- rate from clean wine getting sucked out of the barrel. Gas enters the barrel through the bung rather than the wand itself, and Pratt says that prevents the gas from stirring up any lees. In addition to his welding work, Pratt had earned a reputa- tion for invention after develop- ing The Toad pumpover irrigator in 2001. "Anytime I come up with something, people are ada- mant to see what I have," he said. "I'm not really a designer, but people will come to me with a problem, and I'll try and fix it." After working with the team at Firestone Walker on a few prototype racking wands, Pratt applied for a patent and re- ceived one in 2007 for the wand's locking mechanisms. "We already knew it was going to work. We ran it at Firestone for two years before putting it on the market," he said. "When it hit the market, it just kind of blew out of proportion." The wands are produced in Paso Robles and have been sold to wineries around the world. Pratt said he produced about 200 in 2015. TCW EQUIPMENT TCW's pressure racking wand is available in 32-inch length for standard barrels or 42-inch for puncheons. A sight glass is in- cluded, and wand height can be adjusted with the knob on the top of the wand. Price: $697. tcwequipment.com THE VINTNER'S VAULT The Vintner's Vault's Golden Re- triever wand is fully adjustable to any length. The pressurizing bung can be used on other stan- dard wands. The wand comes with a welded sight glass and ad- justable tip for lees. Price: $625. thevintnervault.com PRODUCT FOCUS Racking Wands By Andrew Adams