After a few short delays in the delivery schedule, our 10 ton fermentation tanks have finally arrived and been installed at the Naumes Crush & Fermentation facility. Each 10 ton tank can hold around 2700 gallons of premium wine, making these the second largest we will have, after the 3200 gallon tank. The four tanks arrived on their sides on a flatbed, and to get them upright took a boom truck, a forklift and a lot of manpower. It took the crew about 5 hours to get the four tanks upright and installed on their pads near the catwalk.

While we were busy with the tanks, other crews were continuing with the electrical and plumbing, which should be complete in about 2 weeks. Due to unforeseen circumstances our crush-ready date was pushed back, but we will still be fully operational by the time grapes are being harvested in a few weeks. The offices and state-of-the-art lab are almost complete, just waiting on lab equipment and a few chairs. As it is with any project, especially one of this size, finishing up the last minute details always takes a little time, but we are being careful going through all of them to make sure everything is perfect in time for our clients grapes.

The tanks were offloaded on their sides, and tipped upright later. You can see just how massive they are!

The first one installed on its pads inside the winery.

The second tank starting its trip inside.

Almost upright.

There we go!

The boom truck was only able to get them this far, from here on out we had to use a forklift.

The forklift looks tiny next to that giant tank!

Slowly does it.

This was the most delicate part, making sure the tank lined up with the catwalk, the other tank and the concrete pads.

 After some fine-tuning the second tank was finally in place!

And after a few more hours all four were right at home.

Things are really starting to shape up with these tanks installed!

More exciting news this week, our optical sorter from WECO was delivered! This was the last major piece of crush equipment that we were waiting on. Here is a video of it in action:

The lab is almost ready too, just waiting on the major testing equipment to arrive in the next few weeks.

These are the “spiders” that will run down the middle of each row of tanks delivering hot & cold glycol and electricity to our Tanknet system which will automatically control the temperature inside the fermenter.

We are now down to the final weeks before crush readiness here at Naumes Crush & Fermentation. This week work continues putting in the electrical and plumbing, but the big news is the catwalk. Crews are installing it now, so it is in place when the large tanks arrive in the next few weeks. This catwalk will allow our winemaker and other employees to reach the top of the larger fermentation tanks, for cleaning and easy access for samples to analyze in our state-of-the-art wine laboratory.

    The catwalk runs down the center of where the tank pad was poured a few weeks ago.

You can see the cutouts where the tanks will rest.

Our experienced crew preparing to mount the stairs to the main unit.

The overhead lines for water, Glycol and other liquids.

The other exterior buildings are being painted to give the whole facility a uniform, professional look.

Last, but certainly not least, we received our first barrels. They are now in our barrel room, waiting to be filled with ultra-premium wine.

Crews have  been hard at work for the last week or so preparing our state-of-the-art facility for the fermentation tanks. The biggest project for this was to pour an extra thick layer of concrete to serve as a “pad” for the larger tanks, including our 10-tonners. Crews started the tank pad area by digging out a foundation area and shoring it up with rebar, then the pillars were poured. The pillars are where the feet of the tanks will rest, so there are four for each tank. After the pillars had time to set, the main body of the pad was poured. We had to get this finished now so the concrete had time to cure before the tanks are installed early next month.

The foundation hole for the main tank pad. This is where the 10-tonners will sit.

The same area, now framed up with 2×4’s. You can see where the pillars will go, as each has its own form.

This is what the finished product looks like. You can see they poured the pillars before the main body of the pad, because the pillars had a little more time to dry. This picture was taken right after they had finished smoothing the main body of concrete.

Nearer the door they also pored this single pad. This is where our 3200 gallon tank will sit. It will be a good resource for our winemaker because it is versatile. It can serve as a white fermenter, for very big lots, but also as a blending tank. Its main purpose will be as a shipping/receiving tank, since its the equivalent size to a tanker truck.

While the concrete crews have been hard at work with the tank pads, our electrical team has also been putting in a lot of work installing all the wiring and fixtures. Here they are running the conduit for overhead lighting.

Perhaps the biggest news from today was this. We now have a sign! It gives the whole facility a more finished look. This is only a temporary sign to help truck drivers and visitors find us. Our official sign will be installed pending approval from the City of Medford.

The Naumes Crush team meeting with consulting Winemaker Robert Britton

Work is finishing up on the Naumes Crush and Fermentation winery buildings. The tank farm building has been enclosed and insulation has been installed. Up next is finishing the electrical and plumbing, then the tank pads will be poured. With eight weeks to crush readiness we are on schedule. Major equipment should begin arriving any day now!

The exterior of the tank farm

The view from inside the tank farm building into our future receiving area

Beginning to mark where the tanks will go