Bottling Sparkling Wine: Here’s What You Should Know
Sparkling wine products can be packaged in bottles, cans or kegs. In order to ensure your product is packaged to the optimal standard we share some key information to make bottling sparkling wines a success.
How do you make wine sparkling?
There are two key ways to carbonate sparkling wine products. The first is in tank, which is when the product is carbonated in large stainless steel tanks that store the product before bottling. This is known as the Charmat method. The second option is in line carbonation which is when a product enters the packaging facility as a still product, and CO2 / bubbles are added during the packaging process, direct to the bottle. Here at Idyll, our state of the art packaging lines (can, bottle and keg) utilise in line carbonation, but we also have capabilities to produce via the Charmat method.
OH&S risks when bottling sparkling wine products
Sparkling and carbonated wines can be particularly complex to package, especially if packaged in glass. This is because the CO2 in the product creates a greater risk of bottle explosions due to increased pressure and bubbles in the product. Safety glasses are a must when bottling sparkling wine products to minimise safety risks in the packaging facility.
What materials are needed to bottle sparkling wine products?
When bottling sparkling wines in the traditional sparkling bottle, you will utilise the following materials. A glass bottle, a sparkling cork, a muselet (the metal piece you twist off), and a hood (the piece that covers the cork and muselet) as well as a label. The colour and material selection of each of these elements are crucial to the overall appearance of the final product. They are also all crucial to ensure the carbonated product is secured inside the bottle.
How does a sparkling bottling line work?
In order to bottle sparkling wine on traditional bottling lines, glass bottles are loaded onto the machine, cleaned and sterilised before heading to the filler to be filled with product. Once filled, the cork is placed inside the top of the bottle before the muselet is tightened to ensure the cork stays in place. The bottle then passes through a cleaner, and warmer/dryer to prepare the bottle for labelling. Next the hood is applied, and then the label. Cleaning and drying the bottle is so important as it ensures the label will stick to the bottle. Next the bottles are placed into boxes to make up a full case of wine. Depending on the automation of your machine, the boxes of wine may stack themselves onto a pallet or this can be done by hand. Pallets are then wrapped to ensure the cases stay on the pallet.
Idyll Wine Co are experts in bottling sparkling wine. We have capabilities for both private label wines and contract packing. Contact us today to learn more.