Touted for its health benefits and romanticized in films like “Sideways”, wine is quickly becoming the alcoholic beverage of choice for many Americans. Since owning a winery is but a fantasy for most oenophiles (or, in layman’s terms: wine lovers), one company developed the ProVina™ WinePod, or Personal Winemaking Portal, to help home vintners (or winemakers) create their own personal wineries.
It’s clear that wine is big business. Wine sales grew a rosy 6.8 percent in 2007 while domestic beer sales continue to sink (although, import sales and light beer sales remain strong). More than 3,300 wine brands have been introduced into grocery stores since 2000, but the most telling statistic of all may be this: wine consumption in the U.S. was estimated at more than 3 gallons per person last year. That’s a lot of wine! And, although alcohol sales tend to remain steady during economic downturns (and many economists predict that one is already upon us), some wine lovers are looking for new ways to craft their own blends.
Enter the ProVina WinePod. Shaped like a large wine glass, this 4-foot-high stainless-steel tank does it all - from pressing the grapes to fermentation and aging. But, this is not a bottle-by-bottle system; the WinePod creates 4 or 5 cases of wine (a “standard lot”) at a time. WinePod users can elect to age the wine in the unit, or purchase small oak barrels for a more authentic taste. The WinePod may be positioned almost anywhere in a home – so long as it has adequate space, some ventilation and a standard electrical outlet. Monitoring the wine’s progress is easy, as the system’s interactive guide WineCoach sends data from the pod to a home or personal computer. With the provided data, winemakers can easily track temperature, sugar levels and other essential components to ensure that their blends are suitable for consumption. And, for all the entry-level winemakers out there, the WineCoach gives step-by-step instructions throughout the entire process.
While the WinePod provides the means for an individual to make wine, it also may require a good number of additional supplies not included with the unit (though available for purchase from ProVina). First and foremost, the wine will require grapes – and a lot of them (making a “standard lot” requires 15 gallons of de-stemmed grapes). Owners of the WinePod can choose to buy fresh grapes locally, or purchase the fresh-frozen Napa Valley grapes that are available through ProVina’s website. Also available from ProVina are the Accessories Kit and Consumables Kit. The Accessories Kit contains non-consumable items needed in winemaking such as a punch down tool, a racking wand, a thermometer and a hydrometer, while the Consumables Kit contains yeast, tartaric acid, fermentation tannins and other additives that are required for winemaking.
The first WinePods hit the market in 2006 and quickly sold out. Currently, ProVina is taking orders for its next model, which is slated for arrival later this spring. People interested in purchasing one of the new WinePods can reserve a model online. Once ProVina has a definitive shipping schedule in place, a sales associate will contact individuals on the waiting list to secure deposits. And, though the WinePod may seem a little bit pricey at $3,500 (plus shipping), it’s still a bargain compared to Napa Valley real estate.
