Crusher aperture setting

[JackH]

Hi all. I am transitioning to grapes this fall and am prepping some gear. I purchased a stainless steel paddle wheel crusher with adjustable aperture. What is the ideal width of the aperture for crushing? Guessing it would be a percentage of average grape diameter (i.e. 1/2 D, or 2/3 D)? I'm also guessing it's possible to over crush and under crush? Thanks in advance for any help!

 

[Johnd]

You are correct, it depends upon the size of the grapes you get and the completeness of crushing you desire. Biggest thing is to make sure you're not so tight that you can crush seeds. I try to get mine set at the time of crush when I see the grapes, and prefer a setting where most every grape is popped. Some like to set it a little looser, where a percentage of grapes (smaller ones) come through uncrushed. It's a personal preference.

 

[Ajmassa]

@JackH that’s a great question that I’ve also been meaning to ask. I’ll tack on another for @Johnd.
Are rubber rollers better? And are they spaced differently than metal?

Or to put it another way, would having rubber rollers allow you to get extra tight without breaking seeds?

 

[NorCal]

I have rubber rollers and the first thing I did was spread them all the way open. I did this for two reasons. One to be more gentle on the grapes and seeds, the second to allow fermentation to last longer with some whole berries getting through. I understand there may be a little RS after pressing, due to some berries that did not fully ferment, but a year of aging will take care of that. This has worked to my satisfaction for reds and not planning on making any changes.

This strategy has not worked well for whites, where the must is pressed right away. Too many whole berries have gotten through the last time I did Viognoir, that we had to run the must back through the destemmer, just to increase the juice yield. My press is not capable of crushing any grapes that are not already broken open by the destemmer. If I were to do whites again on my press, I would adjust the rollers to be closer.

 

[JackH]

You are correct, it depends upon the size of the grapes you get and the completeness of crushing you desire. Biggest thing is to make sure you're not so tight that you can crush seeds. I try to get mine set at the time of crush when I see the grapes, and prefer a setting where most every grape is popped. Some like to set it a little looser, where a percentage of grapes (smaller ones) come through uncrushed. It's a personal preference.

Thanks for the feed back. Quick follow up: what are the pros/cons of 'heavy' crush (a con you mentioned being crushed seeds) and 'light' crush? My focus will be on white grapes in general and Vidal blanc in particular (started a 20 vine backyard vineyard this year, and while it matures, will be buying that variety in the fall to begin to work with this variety). Thanks again!

 

[Chuck E]

Thanks for the feed back. Quick follow up: what are the pros/cons of 'heavy' crush (a con you mentioned being crushed seeds) and 'light' crush? My focus will be on white grapes in general and Vidal blanc in particular (started a 20 vine backyard vineyard this year, and while it matures, will be buying that variety in the fall to begin to work with this variety). Thanks again!

If you crush the seeds too much, I have found that you get bitter tannins in the must. It seems to remain bitter even with age.

 

[Johnd]

@JackH that’s a great question that I’ve also been meaning to ask. I’ll tack on another for @Johnd.
Are rubber rollers better? And are they spaced differently than metal?

Or to put it another way, would having rubber rollers allow you to get extra tight without breaking seeds?

Personally, it feels like there’s less chance of crushing seeds, which makes me more comfy to set them tightly, which I prefer in my ferments.

 

[Johnd]

Thanks for the feed back. Quick follow up: what are the pros/cons of 'heavy' crush (a con you mentioned being crushed seeds) and 'light' crush? My focus will be on white grapes in general and Vidal blanc in particular (started a 20 vine backyard vineyard this year, and while it matures, will be buying that variety in the fall to begin to work with this variety). Thanks again!

If you’re doing whites, you’ll want a much tighter setting on you rollers, allowing you to pop all of the grapes, and easing the release of juice when you press.