Now You Know: Inside Mobile Wine Bottling Trucks

For those of us who had no Earthly idea that this was going on, many, or even most, winemakers are relying on a specialized industry to handle their bottling needs:

Mobile bottlers are a specialty niche industry that come with their own expertise, equipment, and knowledgeable and experienced crew. These crews do most of the bottling for the wine industry, at least on the West Coast and Virginia, because it cuts out the logistical, financial, and training headaches that wineries face in running their own bottling operation. In the ultra-competitive winemaking industry, space is at a premium, especially when you're dealing with an event like bottling that only happens a couple times a year, so the portable outfits make much more sense for them.

Smaller bottlers are using straight trucks fifth-wheel trailers about the size of a medium-sized camper, while some of the larger companies employ fleets of 10-12 or more tractor-trailers, outfitted with equipment mostly imported from Europe. Not only are the bottling lines easily adjusted for changes in bottle sizes, but some bottlers also offer boxed wine packaging options.

And, of course, because California, "wine in a can" is also, oddly enough, an option that is gaining ground for mobile bottling.

External Links:

Your Wine Was Probably Bottled In A Truck

The Bottle Meister keeps the wine flowing for Central Coast wineries

Skip The Bottle, Ditch The Box — Wine In A Can Is About To Break Big