WHITE WINE & ROSE WINE PROCESS

This chart shows a simplified way of making white wine

After crushing the free run juice(must) (best quality) is separated and treated separately from the rest that is sent to the press. There are normally different steps to pressing and each time the must is separated into different vats. All go through the same process but separately. 

In some cases of certain aromatic wines such as Muscat, Riesling and Albarino the wine maker chooses to keep the must in contact with the skins to shortly to increase there flavor intensity. 

Pure grape juice can still carry fragments of the grape and is thus clarified before fermentation and before bottling.

The alcoholic fermentation: White wine will ferment between 12°-22°c, lower fermentation temperatures slow down the process and encourage the development of aromas. If the winemaker wants to maintain the pure grape fruit flavor then they will choose to ferment in a steal tank or vat, thus not adding any additional flavors.
If they choose to ferment in oak barrels (like chardonnay) which will give the wine more integrated and subtle oak flavors. Temp. control is more difficult in barrels so they are normally housed in cool cellars nevertheless they still run on the higher temp. scale for fermentation. 



Malolactic fermentation as explained in WINE MAKING: The Beginning, is not for most white wines as it adds buttery and nutty flavors and reduce the pure fruit aromas associated with white wine. 

ROSE WINE

Rose wine can be made in 4 different ways (Oak is rarely if ever used)

Direct Pressing
Same process as making white wine but in this case the wine maker uses black grapes. This creates the most delicate color rose wines. 

Drawing off
Red grapes are used like in red wine making(coming in next article) but once fermentation is under way the juice is drawn from the skins after 6- 48 hours depending on the desired color.  Longer contact deeper color. Once it has been drawn off it continues like white wine at low temperatures. 

Bleeding
same as Drawing but only a portion of the juice is drawn off. The rest continues to be red wine and the rose is merely a by-product. 

Blending
Mixing a bit of red wine to white wine. This is not permitted in the EU with rose Champagne being the exception. Cheap new age rose wine is made this way.  

To learn more see Wines and Spirits (understanding style and quality)