6.3.1 Overview

Choosing between in-house bottling and an external service

Bottling is regularly carried out by service providers because it is an operation that often takes place only once a year and for a relatively short period. Using an external company to carry out the bottling process reduces maintenance costs and does not require the monopolization of a dedicated space throughout the year. This strategy is very practical in the absence of any unforeseen events (cancellation by the service provider, errors in scheduling dates for bottling, etc.).
When bottling is done in-house, there is more flexibility when choosing bottling dates and total control over the production cycle. Furthermore, bottling can take place several times per year, wine by wine, range by range, all while respecting the necessary ageing periods. This option also allows total control with regard to the bottling process, the technique used and the quality standards applied. However, installation costs are high, and the amortisation of such an investment can be long.

For example, at Château Grillet and Clos de Tart, bottling is done by an external service provider. At Château Latour and Domaine d'Eugénie, bottling is done in-house. At Domaine d'Eugénie, where there are 10 different appellations, this allows bottling to be done in several stages.

The following points cover the essential aspects regardless of whether the bottling is done in-house or by a service provider.
In the case of a service provider, some of these issues are managed by the latter, but it is possible for the property to approve a strict set of specifications with control points carried out by the property when a service provider is involved.

What are the main post-bottling defects?

• Early wine oxidation due to a less-than-optimal management of dissolved gases before and during bottling and/or to defects related to the stoppers.

• Microbial issues: for example, organoleptic deviations caused by Brettanomyces can also occur when filtration prior to bottling is not sterilizing. It is also possible that the filter became clogged, which can cause a release of B. bruxellensis. Other problems can occur if the bacterial population levels are high and the free SO2 level is insufficient to protect the wine.

• Appearance of cork taint (also called TCA) primarily caused by the cork: TCA or 2,4,6 Trichloroanisole brings a musty, odour/taste of cork. The detection threshold is 1.5 to 5 ng/l.

• Debris or dust in the bottle deposited before corking or that was in the bottle because it was not rinsed properly before bottling.

• Problems related to excess pressure or leaking bottles when the corking and the time the bottle was left "standing" after corking are not optimal.

It is important to monitor all these parameters in order to ensure optimal bottling and to preserve the wine's quality after it has been bottled.