Lab Equipment

May get a chance to upgrade this year.

Parameters: high throughput, can do a lot of different analyses well, relatively automated. Will be run by people with Enology and science backgrounds, but who also have a lot of other stuff to do. We’re not a tiny winery, so not concerned about buying a D9 when a tractor will do. Payback for anything I have been looking at will be within 1-3 years.

Something a little less time-consuming than wet chemistry (time and staffing issue), but robust and accurate. Mainly focused on TA, pH, acetic/VA, malic, RS, NOPA/YAN measurement of some sort, alcohol if possible (but it seems like there’s not a lot of machines that can do this as well). We do Rippers for SO2s and I am happy fine with our results. Hand grenades, not darts, but close enough for our needs.

So far, I have been looking at:

OenoFoss - remarkably easy to use, huge throughput. No ongoing materials needed. Downsides: calibration set will require a lot of initial inputs. Accuracy below certain thresholds for important stuff. Expensive.

ChemWell

Randox machines (Monaco and the other…blanking on the name)

Anyone have experience with these machines? Pros/cons? More I should add to the list?

If I had the money I’d go full bore and get the Foss Winescan. The new ones have F?TSO2 capabilities, although, as you know, you would have to confirm RS/malic dryness enzymatically.

Given the upcoming (5??), you might want to think about different “lab equipment”:
http://www.quickmedical.com/sklar-instruments-textor-vasectomy-clamp.html


But congrats! (I think)

Second, on the Foss Winescan. We were running numbers on 1200 individual barrels, and this was an unbelievable timesaver…

#4.

That was the “equipment check.” Yup, still works. It’s doomed for the boneyard, though, as the supply lines are going to be broken here soon.

Out of curiosity, why? Was this at Crushpad or something?