Another factor is now good (efficient in squeezing juice from the pomace) is the press and how hard is the pressing? Both factors affect the amount of wine produced.
Volume estimates from grapes to wine
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I was talking to a winemaker about how many bars he pressed his grapes with in a bladder press and then asked how a basket press would produce. He didn't know exactly but said you would never get to 3 bars which what he presses at. My concern was releasing too many seed tannins. Since then I'm not afraid to press as hard as I can. Another thing I noticed is if you let the press rest for a while it seems to loosen up so you can press again. The other thing to extract more juice is to remove the cake put it back and press again. I've been really happy with my yields after doing this and the skins are very dry when finished.
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I am with you @mainshipfred, I don't think it it's possible to press hard enough to release seed tannin with a hand press. I generally just press ads hard as I can, then let it sit with that pressure for about 10-15 minutes, then give it a few more turns for good luck. I don't take the cake out and repress, I generally get about 7.5 gallons from 100 pounds of grapes.
You should try it sometime, pretty incredible.
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I am lucky to get the good for nothing Cellar Rat I have to even let it wait as long as I do. She gets bored with thr process and leaves. She would probably turn the lights off on me.
I want to try the method @mainshipfred mentioned, but I line the press with cheesecloth to trap the seeds and chunks. Re-doing the cake would be messy.
However, I have an idea: I have a large nylon bag that will fit over an 8 gallon primary, so I'm considering skipping the cheesecloth and place the bag over the primary I catch the juice in. Instead of taking the cake out, I'll buy a new fork specifically for the wine making, sterilize it before use, and break the cake up within the press, then press again.
Anything obviously wrong with this proposal?
I have a couple of forks, a 3 and a 5 tine, but they're old and rusty. I can't see cleaning them up well enough that I'd stick 'em in my wine!
However, I have an idea: I have a large nylon bag that will fit over an 8 gallon primary, so I'm considering skipping the cheesecloth and place the bag over the primary I catch the juice in. Instead of taking the cake out, I'll buy a new fork specifically for the wine making, sterilize it before use, and break the cake up within the press, then press again.
Anything obviously wrong with this proposal?
I have a couple of forks, a 3 and a 5 tine, but they're old and rusty. I can't see cleaning them up well enough that I'd stick 'em in my wine!
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