Our latest White Paper presents two case studies to help determine when it is worth it to treat very high VA.  

Or, how to lower pH, reduce SO2, and stabilize tartrates without effecting flavor or structure. 

You'll be shocked how economical our smaller systems for small wineries are. Best of all, our systems are TTB approved to reduce alcohol in your wine legally.  

And they feature our coveted dealc process:

• no heat
• no pressure
• no vacuum
• nothing but alcohol removed

Click Here for a Brochure.

Or Contact Us. 

A leading laboratory recently disclosed what your palate may already be telling you: certain 2011 wines are marked by a high level of pyrazine.

Fortunately, we perfected our process for pyrazine removal years ago, so it is already well-known. It is so efficient, it doesn't matter how high the pyrazine level is.  Any variation in processing to below threshold is negligible.  As always, we pass the savings from from our high efficiency on to you with remarkable pricing.

ETS now offers pyrazine analysis. This is great for confirming that the vegetative character is indeed a result of elevated pyrazines.

Familiar will be our classically low pressures and high selectivity.  Trials are available, but are not necessary.  If its green, it can be treated, without collateral damage.

Contact us today to deal with this simple matter.

When you remove alcohol from your wine, you want to minimize the impact as much as possible.  There are three great ways to ensure that you do no harm.

FIRST, is to choose a method that does not involve quality impairing manipulations.  There are three approved methods in the US. One is relatively new (about 10 years) while two have been around for about 20 years.  The two older methods involve one or more highly detrimental facets:

• high pressure
• vacuum
• heat
• aroma stripping
• wine deconstruction

The third method, which we call Direct Contact Extraction (DCE) employs none of these harmful processes.  It simply extracts alcohol, and only alcohol, directly from the wine. It does this at cellar temperature, without the use of pressure, heat, vacuum or any other process.  

SECOND, ensure that your dealcoholization does not lose valuable flavors along with the alcohol removed. With the older methods, about 50% to 60% of what is removed is flavors other than alcohol. 

The big upside of DCE is that everything that is removed from the wine is alcohol.

THIRD, ensure that you don't lose valuable wine volume.  By removing only alcohol, DCE delivers 50% to 60% smaller losses due to processing. 

SECRET ONE: Lower cost. You might think that our process would be an expensive service.  It probably doesn't help when you meet one of our high-end winery clients who mentions they use us for dealc.  If the Napa cult cab uses us, it must be expensive, no?  Well, no.  Our process costs much less than any other alcohol reduction process available.  From 20-50% less actually.  This holds for small lots as well as large ones, with the lowest minimums around.

SECRET TWO: Lower volume loss. Because our process removes only alcohol, the loss is limited to the volume of alcohol removed.  This is something that distillation cannot achieve.  In fact, with some of the distillation-based dealc processes, more than half of what is lost from the wine is flavors other than alcohol. 

SECRET THREE: No collateral damage. This is a classic case of addition by subtraction.  In comparison to the other methods of dealcoholization:

• take away the heat
• take away the pressure
• take away the vacuum
• take away the loss of flavors other than alcohol

And what you are left with is a process that affects wine in precisely the desired way: removal of alcohol. 

ABOUT MAVRIK DEALCOHOLIZATION: Mavrik's process is simplicity itself.  Alcohol is extracted across a membrane that permits only alcohol and nothing else to cross. It does so at ambient temperature, with no pressure, no heat, no vacuum, and no compromise.  Like everything we do, this process is TTB-approved.   

No Heat.  No Pressure.  One-step dealc by membrane, for as low as $6.25 per Proof Gallon.  Very low minimum fees as well for small lots.

For a few decades, methods using distillation, or high pressure, or both, forced you to accept a certain impact on quality. However, Mavrik offers the no impact alternative.

It all centers around a membrane of our own design. This membrane enables us to remove alcohol and nothing else.  And it enables us to do so at typical cellar temperatures.  No heat. No vacuum.  And no high pressure RO involved either. 

High end producers love the process because it removes only alcohol and leaves the wine unfazed.  But value wine producers love it for the fact that it is absolutely the lowest cost alternative around. 

Mavrik is located in Santa Rosa, but chances are that our process is available near you.  

• <400psi--a promise no other process can make
• negligible effect on pH and TA
• treatment w/o negative effects (several passes possible)
• most cost-effective
• experienced technicians supported by in-house winemaking team 

• less wine moved for equal result
• no heat pickup
• >30% reduction per pass

• no variable headspaces or extra tank
• negligible heat pickup
• pay for precise final VA
• client chooses final VA by number or sensory

Rot and Mold Removal Samples (aka, 2010-2011)

A lot of people were concerned this past summer about the moldy/rot characters in their wines from 2011 and 2010.  We worked with a lot of people to remove these characters--ranging from a metallic funk to musty, mousy, and so on.

Obviously, you are flying in the dark here, without a specific compound to aim for. But we researched and trialed the broad spectrum of separation technologies and adsorbents in our arsenal to come up with a combination that reliably adsorbs the offending flavors/aromas of wine made from rain-damaged grapes.

We have been so proud of the results, we recently bottled up samples of a wine we treated. It was made from moldy grapes harvested over the course of several days after heavy rains. The resulting funk pretty much ruined the wine.  I think you would be impressed with the after sample which shows tremendous varietal character (pinot noir) and fruit, and no negative side effects  from the treatment.  The winery, originally planning to bulk it out, decided to bottle it after our treatment.

If you have something suffering from the recent wet vintages, give us a call (707-320-0672) and tell us about it.  If you want to clean it up to use or bulk it, we'll send you a sample of this pinot to assess.

We have completely updated our smoke taint information on our website. 

We have continually revised and refined the selectivity of our process to have no negative effect on your wine.  You can recover the wine to be as good or better than if it had not been exposed to wildfires in the first place.

AROMATIC  PHENOLS

Aromatic phenols vary across a very broad spectrum. Our research discovered that those which cause the sensory defect of smoke taint share an important set of characteristics, making it possible to target them for removal.  The markers guaiacol and 4-methylguaiacol are not part of this group.

As a result, we are able to target the offensive compounds, while removing little of the desirable volatile phenols--those associated with oak aging, like guaiacol and 4-methylguaiacol.

PROCESSING CONDITIONS

Only the gentlest is good enough for your wine. Our very low pressures and very selective separations mean the wine rebounds quickly from processing, to show no negative effects. Low-key intervention attracts little attention, and requires very little input (aside from sensory) from you and/or your staff.

RESULTS

• laboratory analysis has no correlation with sensory qualities AFTER processing by Mavrik
• laboratory analysis before processing has accuracy of +/- 10%
• therefore, our model accurately predicts processing needed to within 10%
• you call the end of processing based on your sensory analysis
• no long-term detrimental effects to wine

MALOLACTIC FERMENTATION

For reasons not entirely understood, the sensory expression of smoke taint may not stabilize until about 4-6 weeks post ML. For this reason we do not advise treating until after ML.

FOR MORE INFO, CLICK HERE

pH Secrets

Small acid additions are usually effective and useful.  However, it may also leave the resulting wine tart and angular.  

Our pH lowering processes--one for juice and one for wine--reduce the buffering capacity without otherwise affecting the wine/juice. Buffers push the pH of the juice upward in contrast to acid.  This is why there is not an absolute relationship between pH and TA.  As grapes ripen, acids are lost, but these buffers are not. This is one reason that pH goes up as grapes ripen. Our processes are highly focused on removing those buffers.  They don't contribute to flavor or aroma, so, unlike adding acid, there are no negative side effects. 

Although pH reductions can be done to either juice or wine, lowering pH on juice is perhaps the most desirable choice.  Only a portion of your juice lot is needed and less overall processing is required. Because of the increased efficiency, juice pH reduction is less expensive than wine.  From a winemaking standpoint, it permits lower SO2 additions with greater protection, all the way through the winemaking process.  

Bottling Your 2011 and 2010

We have been extremely effective in dealing with selectively removing the undesirable characteristics of the 2010 and 2011 vintages. Whether it is general rot or mold characters, or diacytel, acetoin, acrolein, or just the usual pyrazine rescue, our customers are privately thanking us for helping them put forward the wines their customers expect.

I know you don't want to think about bottling right now, but after harvest is the best time to get on our schedule. 

Mavrik Appoints Kevin Wilkinson to Oversee Engineering and Fabrication

Santa Rosa,CA(July 17, 2012).  Mavrik North America has appointed Kevin Wilkinson to oversee Engineering and Fabrication operations for its winemaking technologies and equipment. Kevin will be based at Mavrik’s Santa Rosa-based fabrication and design facility.

Wilkinson grew up on a farm inSoledad,CAand graduated from Cal Poly SLO in 2003 with a degree in Agricultural Engineering.  After graduation, he worked for eight years at Ag Industrial Manufacturing in Lodisupporting wineries and vineyards with a specialization in mechanical harvesters.  

Wilkinson was hired to relieve one of Mavrik’s founders, Bob Kreisher, of some engineering responsibilities. “We have several new technologies and filters coming out soon,” says Kreisher.  “As we continue to grow, my attention is increasingly commanded by research and development of gentle winemaking filtration and technologies.  Kevin is critical to maintaining our design standards, deadline management, and quality control for all of our equipment. He has already improved many of my original designs.”

Wilkinson has already made major contributions to Mavrik’s line of must pump carts, and its soon-to-be-released radical new wine filtration system.  In addition, he has improved the efficiency of the fabrication department and expanded its capabilities. 

ABOUT MAVRIK

Founded in 2006, Mavrik is a family-owned and operated company, based inSanta Rosa,CA.

Mavrik’s research & development efforts have led to original technologies and equipment, some of which are patent pending:

• Alcohol reduction in wine
• Volatile acidity and ethyl acetate removal from wine
• Pyrazine removal from wine
• 4ep/4eg removal from wine
• Tartrate stability in wine
• Must pumps
• Smoke taint removal from wine

When we developed our pyrazine removal process over two years ago it was an instant hit.  Winemakers were amazed they could reduce the pyrazines in their wine without any collateral damage to the wine. 

One early adopter, who had plenty of experience with processes based on membrane separation, was resistant at first. She had never worked with us before, but had heard we could remove pyrazines.  She had high hopes for this blend which had made stellar wines in the past, but this year had a green edge that just wouldn't go away.  She eventually decided she just wasn't ready to try a membrane process yet, because it always left the wine with a "processed" taste that she didn't like. 

She tried oak on part of the lot.  No success, but she was sure glad she didn't over oak the entire lot. She tried oenological tannins in lab trials.  No luck.  Fining trials were equally fruitless. 

Then she called us back and  agreed to try our pyrazine removal process. When we were done, she was ecstatic. She asked why the wine didn't have that "processed" quality she was used to with other membrane processes?  

The secret, we explain, is low pressure and high efficiency.  Our pyrazine process, like all our other membrane separations (VA, 4ep/eg, rot reduction, etc), is done at low pressures and high efficiencies.  In order to avoid transforming volatile esters and other key components of the wine, we keep the pressure well below 400psi-typically operating at less than half the pressure of other processes. We also focus on making the most efficient processes in order to dramatically reduce the overall amount of processing required. So we avoid that processed quality so many dislike. 

She was thrilled with the wine, and with our other processes, which she proceeded to try as needed. 

If only wehad known how popular it would make us, we would have developed it sooner.  Reducing SO2 was really a one-off solution for a customer with a malfunctioning SO2 doser.  But this comes up regularly even in the normal course of winemaking.  Now you can do something about it.

Just like our popular processes for removal of VA, Pyrazine, 4ep/eg, sulfides, and more, the SO2 reduction takes place at very low pressures and very high efficiencies. Your wine is protected by the gentleness and economy of our processes. 

2" Triclamp Butterfly Valve $69.  2" Clamp $7.  2" Triclamp Ball Valve $110.  Much more available in our webstore. 

Harvest is just around the corner and supplies at these prices are limited.  So check out our webstore now, or give us a call to get ready for harvest. This is a special acquisition, so some items may be limited.  

DIY available for any of our services with our Eclipse series system.  VA, Pyrazine, 4ep/4eg, and more on your own scale. Buy or rent. 

Brochure 

Website

These 110v single-phase systems are framed in a kevlar-coated lightweight alloy and, like our full-service option, operate at less than 1/3 the pressure required by other treatment systems. So you treat more wine with less impact. 

Brochure.

Positive displacement pumps are the gold standard in wineries for a reason. Versatility and gentle handling are the two big ones.  

Mavrik's RLC series positive displacement pumps are rapidly becoming the top choice for their enhanced gentle handling, user-friendly design, reliability and, most of all, affordability.  

Our design utilizes the highest quality brand name components in a great package.

Learn More. 

It began the way many things do: with a call from one of our loyal clients.  "Our SO2 doser malfunctioned at harvest.  Can you remove SO2--free and total?"  

So we put it to the top of our R&D program figured out how to remove free and total SO2. Now, after running the process on many, many different wines, it is available to you as one of our standard services. So if you want a little extra room to work with--or your SO2 doser malfunctioned--give us a call for our latest low impact targeted removal.

We may not be able to turn water into wine.  But in this case, we might have turned vinegar into wine.  How did it get to 9.5 g/l of volatile acidity? We don't know, we didn't have the nerve to ask.  But we took it down to a normal wine range.  And it now sells for ~ $20 a bottle.   

Why is Mavrikthe choice for tricky wine matters? Simple: our systems treat wine so gently, even a wine with 9.5 g/l of volatile acidity can be treated and sold as a stand-alone premium wine.  Imagine how gentle it is at normal VA ranges?

We haven't been able to keep them in the warehouse long enough to get some good photos until now. But I cornered this one on the way out the door the other day long enough to snap a few photos. 

Website

Brochure 

These 110v single-phase systems are framed in a kevlar-coated lightweight alloy and, like our full-service option, operate at less than 1/3 the pressure required by other treatment systems. So you treat more wine with less impact. 

Mavrik's Rotary Lobe Must Pumps are the best value in moving wine. After using them ourselves to move wine gently, we decided the entire industry should have a chance to own the best value in gentle wine movement.  Mavrik Rotary Lobe pumps.

Our complete selection is a Wine Industry Network Deal this month. 

Must Pumps 

WIN Deals

We are best known for our gentle wine services like alcohol reduction without heat or pressure, VA reduction at the lowest pressures, or tartrate stability that costs less than chilling. 

But we also sell the same reliable laboratory equipment we use for quality control on the services we provide. 

And we design and build our own rotary lobe must pumps for gentle wine, juice, and must movement.

And we sell the reliable valves and fittings we use in the machinery we design and build.  

Check out our <a target="_blank" target=_blank href="http://mavrikna.com/index.php?option=com_virtuemart&Itemid=85">Web Store</a><br />, or give us a call to see what we can do for you.  We carefully source the best quality and value.  And there are additional discounts if you are a customer of our services as well!

When we developed our pyrazine removal process over two years ago it was an instant hit.  Winemakers were amazed they could reduce the pyrazines in their wine without any collateral damage to the wine. 

One early adopter, who had plenty of experience with processes based on membrane separation, was resistant at first. She had never worked with us before, but had heard we could remove pyrazines.  She had high hopes for this blend which had made stellar wines in the past, but this year had a green edge that just wouldn't go away.  She eventually decided she just wasn't ready to try a membrane process yet, because it always left the wine with a "processed" taste that she didn't like. 

She tried oak on part of the lot.  No success, but she was sure glad she didn't over oak the entire lot. She tried oenological tannins in lab trials.  No luck.  Fining trials were equally fruitless. 

Then she called us back and  agreed to try our pyrazine removal process. When we were done, she was ecstatic. She asked why the wine didn't have that "processed" quality she was used to with other membrane processes?  

The secret, we explain, is low pressure.  Our pyrazine process, like all our other membrane separations (VA, 4ep/eg, rot reduction, etc), is done at low pressures and high efficiencies.  In order to avoid transforming volatile esters and other key components of the wine, we keep the pressure well below 400psi-typically operating at less than half the pressure of other processes. We also focus on making the most efficient processes in order to dramatically reduce the overall amount of processing required. So we avoid that processed quality so many dislike. 

She was thrilled with the wine, and with our other processes, which she proceeded to try as needed. 

Well, now you can. Our rates are so reasonable that people have often chosen our services over equipment rental. But we still get requests:

"How can I use your very low pressure, no impact processes when I have small lots and don't want to pay to bring out your crew?"

So, we recently expanded our fabrication facilities and engineering and fabrication team in order to be able to cover yet another of your needs.

Important features of the new rental system include:

• The same gentle processing as our larger systems--top performance at 250psi max!
• Virtually all of the wine recoverable with gas
• All versions feature simple on/off automated controls to protect your wine
• Single Phase 110v operation available
• Lightweight and cost effective

Mavrik North America, founded in 2006, celebrates five years of providing innovative and highly original technologies for wine processing.  Mavrik continues to develop original technologies, instead of using derivative or outdated technologies.  Mavrik is a local (SonomaCounty), family-owned company in a field otherwise dominated by foreign companies and third parties.

Mavrik’s unusual emphasis on research and development makes it the only North American company of its kind developing unique proprietary technologies of its own design and build. US winemakers previously were dependent on Canadian, South African, Italian, French and Australian companies utilizing technologies developed in one place, machinery built in another and then sold/operated by third parties in order to pad the bottom line of international conglomerates. These disconnected roles result in services and products that are over-priced and poorly supported, as well as slow to evolve and innovate.

Mavrik’s emphasis on R&D arose from careful marketplace analysis.  Big multi-national companies are complex, multi-layered, and slow to change, resulting in inflexible, one-size fits all technologies.  Mavrik chose a different path: R&D.  This path led to testing dozens of membranes, adsorbents, and components over the last five years.

The final result: the off-the-shelf stuff others relied on simply wouldn’t deliver Mavrik’s low-pressure, no impact demands.  Fortunately, a few of the membrane and adsorbent manufacturers whose products Mavrik tested were willing to step up to Mavrik’s strict design and build criteria to collaboratively develop entirely new membranes and adsorbents for Mavrik’s original processes.  More importantly, these unique components supported Mavrik’s commitment to totally new approaches to wine processing—leading to several patent applications now in process.

Being an innovator isn’t always easy. As Amazon.com’s Jeff Bezos noted in a recent interview (Wired) “[I]f you’re going to invent, you’re going to disrupt. A lot of entrenched interests are not going to like it.  .  . [S]ome of them will have a vested self-interest in preserving the old way.”

Mavrik’s disruptions—disruptions that eliminate collateral damage—have been well-received in the marketplace.  Many attempts by entrenched interests to equate the old ways with Mavrik’s innovations failed because Mavrik’s leaps forward in wine technology are quite obvious in the resulting wines and tangible factors like dramatically reduced operating pressures.  This has led to 5 years of growth during recession, attributable not only to Mavrik’s leading technologies, but also the fact that Mavrik passes on to customers the savings that spring from good design.

At five years old, Mavrik is just getting started. The next five years will bring more innovation, more patent applications, more product lines.  Ironically, Mavrik is now becoming the “foreign” interloper in international markets.