Minimum fill of 80L bladder press

jpcart · Jan 9, 2024

I found a wild deal on a used 80L bladder press. Does anyone have a sense of what the minimum batch size would be for the press to operate effectively?

I plan to do some batches from about 100 lbs of red grapes. Too big of a press for that right? I could do bigger batches but had wanted to keep them around that range to do some blends.

Last 100 lb batch got me around 10 gallons of must, so guessing around 13-14L of solids….

mainshipfred · Jan 10, 2024

With my 40L I do 200+ lbs which seems to work out perfectly. Unfortunately I would think 100 lbs may not be enough. It is recommended with smaller amounts to partially fill the bladder prior to filling. You may want to try that.

crushday · Jan 10, 2024

jpcart said:
Last 100 lb batch got me around 10 gallons of must, so guessing around 13-14L of solids….

I have a 80L bladder press. Your estimates are spot on. The minimum I have used is 400 pounds of grapes, which is approximately 40 gallons of must. It's not quite full and I can easily lift the cage off while keeping the pomace cake intact. The most I've done is 600 pounds, or 60 gallons of grape must. Although I can still lift the now fuller cage, it's a struggle.

So, I think your considerations are: 1) volume of solids as to not damage the bladder and amount of finished wine and, 2) your upper body strength or the ability to rig up a wench.

jpcart · Jan 10, 2024

Thank you both! They guys wants $250 for it and his hobby never really got off the ground so basically new. Might just snag it and flip the thing, but doesn’t seem to be what I need.

VinesnBines · Jan 10, 2024

jpcart said:
Thank you both! They guys wants $250 for it and his hobby never really got off the ground so basically new. Might just snag it and flip the thing, but doesn’t seem to be what I need.

Get it; decided if you can use it and if not, flip it. Find friends/club that want to make wine and do a group press!