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After we press the remaining mixture of juice and grape musts, the freshly pressed juice is then transferred back into tank. From these tanks, the juice is then transferred to French Oak barrels. Please enjoy the video below from this windy day on our crush pad, as our Winemaker and Resident Cooper, Ed Morris explains this crucial step in the Pinot Noir winemaking process – barrel aging.

Several of our Pinot Noir tanks have completed fermentation! What is left behind in the tank is a mixture of juice and grape musts. After the Winemaking Team drains the juice, they must move what is leftover to the press, to “press out” any additional juice remaining. Please enjoy the video below as our Winemaker and Resident Cooper, Ed Morris explains the importance of pressing.

Processing the freshly picked fruit and completing punch downs are only part of the overall winemaking process. Once into the fermentation tanks, fermentation must begin. The entire fermentation process in tank takes about 12 days. Please enjoy the video below as our Winemaker and Resident Cooper, Ed Morris explains the importance of fermentation further.

We’re now entering week two of harvest 2021! The first step is getting the freshly picked grapes onto the sorting table and then into fermentation tanks. Next, the “punch downs” begin. Please enjoy the video below as our Winemaker and Resident Cooper, Ed Morris explains the importance of the punch down step further.

The Winemaking team is beyond excited to announce harvest 2021 is now officially in full-swing. This morning we welcomed in our Estate Pinot Noir. Please see the photos of the action!

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In case you were unable to attend the recent “Innovations in Oak Barrel Analysis” Seminar, please see the recorded video here!

Every year, Wine Business Monthly sets out to honor those who shape the way the wine industry operates or how people drink wine.

Ron Rubin Winery has fulfilled the requirements for us to have earned our sustainability certification in 2016. This certification was approved by the California Sustainable Winegrowing Alliance, for both our vineyard and winery operations. This is very exciting for us; and reflects our commitment to the environment, our employees, and the business relationships that drive our success. Our holistic approach to winegrowing requires us to continually evaluate our processes and implement positive changes.

Here are just a few of our sustainable practices that we implement at our estate:

In the Vineyards:
-Owl boxes for pest management
-Covercrop for nutrient addition to soils
-Tilling of weeds (no sprays)
-Water availability monitoring in soils, limited irrigation based strictly on needs of vines.
-Drought tolerant, beneficial insect friendly landscaping

Around the Winery:
-Water use monitoring and conservation
-Solar energy
-High efficiency LED lighting installed in 2016 to replace sodium halide lighting
-Continued education and training for staff

According to Mark Greenspan of Advanced Viticulture, “Ron Rubin Winery has installed a new Ranch System weather station and sensor network. The teams in place will be able to monitor and address specific needs of the vineyards; such as tracking the micro-climates of this 10-acre vineyard, along with monitoring soil moisture profiles for irrigation scheduling purposes. Telemetry was an important first step in Ron Rubin Winery’s move toward becoming certified as sustainable. Once we’ve established terroir, the next step will be to initiate a ‘small drink’ irrigation format, providing only the amount of water required by the vines without waste and for optimum wine quality from the vineyard.”