Racking (soutirage): separation by rest

The standard

Condition-led racking sets the moment by the state of the wine and of its lees deposit, not by an interval. What matters is the volume of sediment, the smell of the deposit and the oxygen unavoidably introduced in the process.

Criteria

• The moment follows the state of the deposit, not a fixed rhythm
• The separated fraction is named: fine lees or gross lees
• The oxygen uptake is measured, because every transfer is one
• Each racking is justified individually, not planned as a series

Distinction

Racking ≠ filtration: racking separates through rest and gravity, filtration through a retention medium. Racking ≠ fining: there a haze carrier is bound, here what has already settled is left behind. Condition-led racking therefore charges the oxygen uptake to the result.