Carlsen & Associates' Puleo Wine Press
"A press is a press" , says Jim Carlsen, founder of Carlsen & Associates. Essentially they are all the same. They all inflate, deflate, and rotate. I agree to the extent that all automobiles are generally the same. Mr. Carlsen is considerably easier going than I am.
What makes our presses different? Ours do it when they are supposed to. And when they don't, ask our customers what we do about it. 90% of the few technical issues we encounter can be fixed over the telephone. 90% of the ten percent that require some switch or component are so easy to fix that anyone proficient in the operation of a screwdriver can fix it. And when we are needed, we are there by the time the parts are delivered.
Of course all winery equipment suppliers will contend that their wine presses are better. Great wine is not made with bells and whistles. It is made by eliminating as many variables as possible while trying to capture or enhance the quality of the grapes that you receive. Developing and expressing a style in winemaking is easier with user friendly equipment that delivers a quality product. If you spend less than what our presses cost, you'll eventually feel it. If you spend more, you nothing or very little in service, support, quality of juice, wine, or equipment. Please consider using our customer list. A little time invested in due diligence will pay off.
During harvest, the press is the most important piece of wine making equipment. Without it, you have grapes.
Ironically, the press is the single machine that actually has the LEAST to do with overall wine quality. There is no magic, no voodoo, no divine intervention or luck in a wine press. What exists in presses of poor quality or design is a potential to waste precious hours on stubborn system requirements in rigid programs that are not user friendly, or a lack of features that save time in loading, unloading, or cleaning. You could also create winemaking problems with poor technique if you cannot dictate exactly what the press should be doing.
Once you know your press, you can avoid adding complications like unfavorable phenolics, herbaceousness, increased solids levels, turbidity, grape seed oil extraction, oxidation and general degradation of juice. You must know your fruit and your press. Our pre- crush training will arm you with the knowledge you need. You will encounter situations where you must be a little gentler, a little more patient, or more aggressive to get what you want out of any press. A bladder, basket, or side- membrane (either the open or the tank style) press will generally do whatever you ask if you speak it's language and it can hear you.
As a footnote, our Puleo presses offer axial feed to make fruit processing even easier for the winemaker. Imagine your crushpad running smoother with fewer people. Carlsen make every piece of equipment they offer a vehicle for you to use to make a more competitive product with less labor.
What makes our presses different? Ours do it when they are supposed to. And when they don't, ask our customers what we do about it. 90% of the few technical issues we encounter can be fixed over the telephone. 90% of the ten percent that require some switch or component are so easy to fix that anyone proficient in the operation of a screwdriver can fix it. And when we are needed, we are there by the time the parts are delivered.
Of course all winery equipment suppliers will contend that their wine presses are better. Great wine is not made with bells and whistles. It is made by eliminating as many variables as possible while trying to capture or enhance the quality of the grapes that you receive. Developing and expressing a style in winemaking is easier with user friendly equipment that delivers a quality product. If you spend less than what our presses cost, you'll eventually feel it. If you spend more, you nothing or very little in service, support, quality of juice, wine, or equipment. Please consider using our customer list. A little time invested in due diligence will pay off.
During harvest, the press is the most important piece of wine making equipment. Without it, you have grapes.
Ironically, the press is the single machine that actually has the LEAST to do with overall wine quality. There is no magic, no voodoo, no divine intervention or luck in a wine press. What exists in presses of poor quality or design is a potential to waste precious hours on stubborn system requirements in rigid programs that are not user friendly, or a lack of features that save time in loading, unloading, or cleaning. You could also create winemaking problems with poor technique if you cannot dictate exactly what the press should be doing.
Once you know your press, you can avoid adding complications like unfavorable phenolics, herbaceousness, increased solids levels, turbidity, grape seed oil extraction, oxidation and general degradation of juice. You must know your fruit and your press. Our pre- crush training will arm you with the knowledge you need. You will encounter situations where you must be a little gentler, a little more patient, or more aggressive to get what you want out of any press. A bladder, basket, or side- membrane (either the open or the tank style) press will generally do whatever you ask if you speak it's language and it can hear you.
As a footnote, our Puleo presses offer axial feed to make fruit processing even easier for the winemaker. Imagine your crushpad running smoother with fewer people. Carlsen make every piece of equipment they offer a vehicle for you to use to make a more competitive product with less labor.
What specifics should I consider when buying a press?
Our wine presses have four modes of operation to avoid failures
Basket Press or Bladder Press?
A basket press is good for a boutique winery where maybe one or two varietals is the focus. The basket press that we sell made in the USA. I would love to have an American wine grape press at my winery. But most wine grape presses that you see are manufactured overseas. We carry other presses built from domestically available parts, which we stock. Your winery equipment should have domestic support.
For bladder or side membrane press folks:
1. What size press should I get? This is actually the last question you should ask yourself. But it's the first one we sales guys ask you. Sorry about that. Like buying shoes, there are two ways. Do you buy shoes by type/ brand/ manufacturer/ purpose first, then look for your size? I don't. I look for my size first and everything else second because I have HUGE feet. Your winery is not that unusual. Please assume that your size can be had and consider everything else first. We are the experts on sizing your press. We are here to help you over this hurdle. We will be asking about number of varietals, tons of each, or red to white ratio.
Something fun to remember: Our presses are designed for no minimum load requirement. So don't be afraid to buy the press that you may need for years to come. But don't go too big. an over-sized press may cost you time in inflation and deflation delays.
2. Is this press easy to clean? If you are doing this yourself or have very expensive labor that question is first. Our side membrane presses are the easiest to clean. We train you on our proprietary, water saving , super easy clean in place method.
3. Is this press reliable? As of 2012, we average and have routinely gone ten years without replacing a press bladder. That's because our presses have NO MINIMUM LOADING. And it's because almost everything that can go wrong with ours fits in a briefcase; And typically doesn't.
4. Can I program my press on the fly? Our presses are pre- programmed before you use them. There are 12 easy to use, automated programs for all of your routine types of fruit and two ways to use it manually for that special lot. It is very easy to use. Remember: Carlsen are the guys who sell the two man crushpad. This is EASY. You can start, stop, skip steps, resume, inflate, deflate, and rotate all from right here- either manually or on auto- pilot.
5. Not your average question, but a solid point: Is there a drain pain with a removable screen and a float switch option included in the price we quote? YES. Is this press pan also useable as a pumpover sump? Yes.
6. How does it operate?
Our presses have three main modes of operation.
1. True Manual- Completely independent of the Siemens PLC and touchpad. "No brains" mode; AKA True Manual means that the press will operate even without it's computer.
2. Manual- Through the touchpad. Inflate, Deflate, Rotate, Program, Etc. on demand.
3. Automatic- Tell it to do its thing and walk away. It's harvest. You're busy!
A basket press is good for a boutique winery where maybe one or two varietals is the focus. The basket press that we sell made in the USA. I would love to have an American wine grape press at my winery. But most wine grape presses that you see are manufactured overseas. We carry other presses built from domestically available parts, which we stock. Your winery equipment should have domestic support.
For bladder or side membrane press folks:
1. What size press should I get? This is actually the last question you should ask yourself. But it's the first one we sales guys ask you. Sorry about that. Like buying shoes, there are two ways. Do you buy shoes by type/ brand/ manufacturer/ purpose first, then look for your size? I don't. I look for my size first and everything else second because I have HUGE feet. Your winery is not that unusual. Please assume that your size can be had and consider everything else first. We are the experts on sizing your press. We are here to help you over this hurdle. We will be asking about number of varietals, tons of each, or red to white ratio.
Something fun to remember: Our presses are designed for no minimum load requirement. So don't be afraid to buy the press that you may need for years to come. But don't go too big. an over-sized press may cost you time in inflation and deflation delays.
2. Is this press easy to clean? If you are doing this yourself or have very expensive labor that question is first. Our side membrane presses are the easiest to clean. We train you on our proprietary, water saving , super easy clean in place method.
3. Is this press reliable? As of 2012, we average and have routinely gone ten years without replacing a press bladder. That's because our presses have NO MINIMUM LOADING. And it's because almost everything that can go wrong with ours fits in a briefcase; And typically doesn't.
4. Can I program my press on the fly? Our presses are pre- programmed before you use them. There are 12 easy to use, automated programs for all of your routine types of fruit and two ways to use it manually for that special lot. It is very easy to use. Remember: Carlsen are the guys who sell the two man crushpad. This is EASY. You can start, stop, skip steps, resume, inflate, deflate, and rotate all from right here- either manually or on auto- pilot.
5. Not your average question, but a solid point: Is there a drain pain with a removable screen and a float switch option included in the price we quote? YES. Is this press pan also useable as a pumpover sump? Yes.
6. How does it operate?
Our presses have three main modes of operation.
1. True Manual- Completely independent of the Siemens PLC and touchpad. "No brains" mode; AKA True Manual means that the press will operate even without it's computer.
2. Manual- Through the touchpad. Inflate, Deflate, Rotate, Program, Etc. on demand.
3. Automatic- Tell it to do its thing and walk away. It's harvest. You're busy!
