Winery Fermentation Temperature

Purple Sky Winery (a division of Ocean Star International) is a grower and producer of high-quality grape wine. Located in Pleasant View, Utah, the new facility can process thousands of gallons of wine using its eighteen, 7500-gallon fermentation tanks.

Each tank utilizes jackets filled with flowing coolant to modify and control the temperature of the wine within the tank. Temperature control is an essential component of several processes and stages that the juice goes through to become a high-quality wine.

Apollo was engaged to design, build, and install a PLC-based temperature control system. Our system samples the temperature within each tank checks it against the temperature setpoint, and opens or closes coolant valves to maintain the temperature within a specified error margin.

Because the fermentation process can take days or weeks, the system maintains a record of the temperature over time. This allows the Winemaker, David MaKieve, to observe and modify his process as needed to ensure a quality product.

We had a great time getting to know the winemaking process and designing a custom solution. We are excited to see the winery open, take a tour of the finished facility, and sample the cuisine featured in the on-site restaurant!