1. Technology Transfer; Changes in the
Materials and Containers used to Store
and Transport Wine
Jonathan Musther
2008000046
WSC5.05 Introduction to Wine Business – Assignment 1
WSC5.05 Introduction to Wine Business – Assignment 1 – Jonathan Musther Page 1

2. Introduction
From the time that grapes are crushed, the fermentation and storage of wine, either for
later consumption or for transportation, requires a certain degree of sophisticated
container technology. At all stages, the containers must be watertight, and apart from
during fermentation, they should keep gaseous exchange to a minimum (Jackson, 2008).
Our evidence for early winemaking comes from archeology. The oldest reliable evidence
for organised wine production is dated to approximately 8,000 years ago, although it has
been suggested that the level of organisation indicates that winemaking probably began
much earlier. The ancient winery identified at the Areni-1 cave in modern-day Armenia,
gives some important insights into the vessels and materials used to ferment and store
wine (Kaufman, 2011).
Early clay and ceramic vessels have survived well to provide a record of historical wine
storage. Animal skin and wooden vessels have survived less well, but some evidence
exists. These technologies were refined and modified over the centuries, particularly by
the Romans. This lead to many vessels we would recognise today, such as large wooden
casks and glass bottles (Dal Piaz, 2009). Comparatively recent developments, such as
stainless steel and plastics, have dramatically changed the way wine is stored in
wineries. The reduction in the cost of glass production has meant that almost all wine is
now eventually stored and transported in glass (Jackson, 2008).
This paper will explore the technological changes which have shaped the development of
vessels for wine storage and transportation.
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3. History of Wine Storage
The oldest substantial evidence for wine
production exists in the Areni-1 cave in
Armenia. This includes a wine press, and
a large number of clay vessels, dated to
approximately 8,000 years old. This
evidence is more substantial than
previous finds, typically involving vessels
containing tartaric acid residues. The
vessels in the Areni-1 cave, however, Illustration 1: A clay vessel found in the Areni-1
cave in Armenia. From Kaufman, 2011.
contain traces of malvidin, a flavonoid
present in grapes (Kaufman, 2011).
The press consists of a clay trough, in which grapes would be pressed by foot. The juice
would then drain into a large open vat, also made of clay, where fermentation would
occur. The clay storage vessels would then be used to store the wine (Owen, 2011).
Less reliable evidence for even earlier wine production and storage comes from Northern
China, where pots containing wine residues were dated to approximately 9,000 years
old, 1,000 years older than those at Areni-1 (Dal Piaz, 2009).
Working clay is an ancient human craft, as is roughly carving stone, and as such it seems
logical that these would be applied to wine production and storage. Throughout Europe
and the Mediterranean, evidence of clay vessels and open stone 'tanks' can be found.
The stone 'tanks' and troughs were presumably used for pressing and fermentation, while
smaller, portable clay vessels would be used for storage (Dal Piaz, 2009).
Wherever winemaking first occurred, clay remained the material of choice for
production and storage vessels throughout ancient times. This is likely due to its
abundance, and the ease with which it is worked into watertight containers (Dal Piaz,
2009).
Clay pots, particularly when unfired, are porous to some degree, allowing some loss of
contents, but this problem would be overcome in time, as would the problem of sealing
the clay vessels. It is likely that the early vessels were sealed with more clay, and
possibly some wood or reeds (Dal Piaz, 2009).
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4. As ceramic technology developed, firing became more common, allowing thinner, lighter
and stronger, as well as less porous vessels to be produced. The Egyptians experimented
with many different types of closure for their fired clay vessels, these included cork,
wood and fired clay stoppers. All of these, with the possible exception of cork would
have been sealed with more soft, unfired clay, as well as resins or waxes (Dal Piaz,
2009). The Romans also used resins to seal clay vessels (Plataforma SINC, 2010).
By the time the Greek and Roman
civilisations rose to prominence,
the making of ceramic vessels was
advanced, with glazing possible,
but not routinely practiced. The
Greeks and Romans continued to
store wine in clay vessels, often
called amphora, because they were
economical to produce and
performed well as storage vessels.
The Greeks and later the Romans
traded wine extensively, for which
amphora were well suited.
Amphora were often destroyed once
their contents were used, as they Illustration 2: Roman wine amphorae. From Middleton,
were so cheap to produce. It was 2007.
common practice to float a layer of oil (such as olive oil) on top of wine in order to
extend the life of the wine (Dal Piaz, 2009). Amphora were often lined with pitch or
resin, typically tree resin. This improved their impermeability, as well as flavouring the
wine (Johnson, 1989).
Despite their continued use of amphora, the Romans were able to produce glass bottles,
and had developed various closures, including cork. Glass was more typically used for
serving wine, which would be decanted from amphora (Dal Piaz, 2009).
The Romans also used barrels, although not as extensively as Amphora. The history of
the barrel is not very well recorded, partly because barrels tend not to survive. Pliny
the Elder wrote that barrels were developed by the Gauls in the Alps, as they could be
produced readily in colder climates where clay was harder to produce. There are
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5. suggestions in the writings of Cato the Elder, that wooden casks were known by the
Romans before the conquest of Gaul. Cato also suggested that wines made, or stored in
casks, were of inferior quality and were suitable for slaves (Dal Piaz, 2009).
The Roman use of barrels slowly
increased as the Empire grew.
Typically the Romans liked to
transport wine and other goods by
water, using the sea and rivers.
Amphora were well suited to
transportation by boat, but are
awkward and heavy to transport by
land. Barrels are lighter and
stronger than amphora, they can be
easily rolled and have a longer life Illustration 3: Neumagen Wine Ship - a sculpture
expectancy. By the second century depicting transport of Roman wine, in barrels, on the
Mosel river.
AD, barrels were extensively used
throughout the Roman Empire (Dal Piaz, 2009).
Following the collapse of the Roman Empire, very little changed in the technology of
wine storage and transport, until the 17th century, when the glass bottle and cork closure
were finally perfected. This development wasn't simply the ability to produce glass and
shape cork, but rather the ability to do so economically. The development of bottle
storage allowed delicate, dry wine to be matured (Johnson, 1989).
The final development to have huge effects on the storage of wine was stainless steel.
Developed in the early 20th century, it wasn't until the 1950s that it began to be used for
wine tanks. At the time, most wine tanks were either wooden or concrete, both of
which were difficult to keep clean and hygienic. Stainless steel is an ideal material for
use in wine storage due to its corrosion resistance and the ease of cleaning and
sanitising (Cooper, 2004).
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6. Contemporary Wine Storage
Wine storage is readily divided into four types, fermentation, maturation,
transportation, and final packaging. Wine fermentation and maturation vessels are
dominated by stainless steel tanks, which vary in size from a few hundred litres, to over
a million litres. Tank design varies depending on the specific use. For example red wine
fermentors typically have large access at the top, and large manways at the bottom,
while white wine fermentors typically have narrow top openings, and small manways.
Some wineries still make use of wooden or concrete fermentation vessels (Jackson,
2008).
After fermentation, wines are either matured in stainless steel tanks or wooden barrels.
Again, large wooden vessels and concrete tanks are still used, but stainless steel and
small barriques dominate (Brostrom & Brostrom, 2008).
Wine is typically tranported from the winery for distribution to retail outlets, it is rarely
sold exclusively from the winery premises. This final transportation is often of bottled
product, but otherwise it may be transported in bulk for bottling elsewhere, possibly
after certain other operations. For bulk transportation within the same country, wine is
usually transported by stainless steel tanker. For longer distance, particularly
international transport, advanced plastic bladders can be used inside conventional steel
shipping containers. These provide comparatively cheap, food-grade, no-taint bulk wine
transport (Brostrom & Brostrom, 2008).
The final package for wine is almost always a glass wine bottle. Modern glass wine
bottles are strong, uniform and unreactive with the wine. Glass bottles were sealed
primarily with cork stoppers, but cheaper alternatives, such as the aluminium screw
capsule are now found on a significant proportion of wine bottles. These screw capsules
are structurally made of aluminium, but this does not come into contact with the
product. A small food-grade no-taint plastic seal is present inside the screw capsule, it
is this which seals the bottle, and contacts the wine (Brostrom & Brostrom, 2008).
Some wine is packaged and sold in plastic bladders, which usually contain between 2 and
15 litres, and are often housed in cardboard boxes for rigidity. A small proportion of
wine is packaged in other food-grade containers; plastic bottles, paperboard cartons,
and aluminium cans lined with a plastic laminate (Brostrom & Brostrom, 2008).
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7. Influences on the World of Wine
It is difficult to imagine anything more integral to the world of wine, than the vessels
used to produce and store it. From the moment the grapes are broken, the product is a
liquid one, meaning that storage vessels are essential. The technological changes that
have occurred over the centuries, have change the wine storage and transportation
paradigm. Early clay vessels allowed only short term storage due to porosity, and only
stored small quantities due to the difficulty of making large vessels. Later, fired and
even glazed ceramics, and the development of better stoppers and resin lining, allowed
longer term storage of wine, together with easier transportation. Better ceramics also
allowed the storage of larger quantities of wine, with some Roman vessels holding
thousands of litres (Dal Piaz, 2009).
Moving to the use of barrels allowed easier movement of wine throughout the world,
both over land and sea. Barrels were also strong, meaning fewer breakages than with
ceramics (Brostrom & Brostrom, 2008). Now that wine could be transported, it could be
traded, forming the basis for what we consider to be the 'world of wine'.
With the development of the bottle, wine could be bought and sold in smaller
quantities, which could be stored with low risk of spoilage. Without the bottle,
individuals would not be able to purchase a range of different wines, or mature a few
bottles of a particular wine, sampling it at different points throughout its maturation.
Bottles allow consumers the choice of different wines from around the world, and they
ensure that the consumer receives (in most cases) a product which has survived
maturation and storage (Jackson, 2008).
Finally, the development of hygienic stainless steel, which can be used to build very
large tanks, has allowed the wine industry to produce certain wines on a large scale.
This has enabled the provision of 'consumer' wines, and relatively low prices. These
wines, due in part to the hygienic nature of the new tanks, while affordable, are well
made, and of a good commercial quality (Brostrom & Brostrom, 2008).
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8. Challenges for the Future
It is unlikely that wine storage technology will change significantly in the foreseeable
future. In the winery, stainless steel has provided tanks which are easy to clean and
sanitise, and which can be made as large as is desired for wine purposes. While plastics
may find a place, they have limitations, such as the difficulty of modification and repair,
and their tendency to absorb, to some extent, aromas, or organic/chemical materials.
For transportation, maturation and distribution, the glass bottle is extremely well
suited. Glass is completely unreactive with wine, which allows extended maturation.
New closures may be developed along the lines of the aluminium screw-capsule, but for
the sake of tradition, if for no other reason, it is likely that some cork will still be used.
Glass bottles are heavy and have a high energy cost to produce. Cheaper plastics may
increasingly replace glass for consumer level wines which are not intended to be
matured (Jackson, 2008).
To save on transportation costs, particularly fuel costs, more wines may be transported
to their destination country in bulk, to be bottled there.
While these changes may occur to lesser or greater extents, they do not represent a
large shift in the wine world, rather they are gradual, incremental changes to the
industry as it exists now.
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9. References
A History of Wine Storage. (n.d.). Retrieved August 1, 2011, from
http://www.spiralcellars.co.uk/news/a-history-of-wine-storage2/
Brostrom, G. G., Brostrom, J. (2008). The Business of Wine: An Encyclopedia. Westport, Connecticut:
Greenwood Publishing Group.
Cooper, D. (2004). A History of Steel Tank Structural Design. Retrieved 1 August, 2011, from
http://www.winebusiness.com/wbm/?go=getArticle&dataId=32887
Dal Piaz, G. (2009). The History of Wine Part II – Wine Storage – The Early Days. Retrieved August 1,
2011, from
http://www.snooth.com/articles/the-history-of-wine-part-ii-wine-storage-the-early-days/
Dal Piaz, G. (2009). The History of Wine Part III – Wine Storage – Barrels. Retrieved August 1, 2011, from
http://www.snooth.com/articles/the-history-of-wine-part-ii-wine-storage-barrels/
Intardonato, J. (2008). Fermenting Wine in Cement Tanks. Retrieved August 1, 2011, from
http://www.winebusiness.com/wbm/?go=getArticle&dataId=55049
Jackson, R. S. (2008). Wine Science, Second Edition; Principles, Practice, Perception. Academic Press
Johnson, H. (1989). The Story of Wine. London: Mitchell Beazley International.
Kaufman, M. (2011). Ancient Winemaking Operation Unearthed. Retrieved 1 August, 2011, from
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2011/01/10/AR2011011006227.html
Middleton, A. (2007). Boxed In. Retrieved August 5, 2011, from
http://wine-scamp.com/2007/08/17/boxed-in/
Owen, J. (2011). Earliest Known Winery Found in Armenian Cave. Retrieved August 5, 2011, from
http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2011/01/
110111-oldest-wine-press-making-winery-armenia-science-ucla/
Plataforma SINC. (2010). Chemical analyses uncover secrets of an ancient amphora. ScienceDaily.
Retrieved August 1, 2011, from
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/01/100120085453.htm
Wine History. (2010). Retrieved August 1, 2011, from
http://www.winepros.org/wine101/history.htm
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