Winemakers share a passion for a single goal – making the best wine possible. That’s why, when a winery seeks services from an outside company, they go to the experts. Bringing in expertise is critical when the service is highly specialized, especially when it’s new or infrequently used by the winery or if it’s a complex problem. No winemaker or winery owner wants to lose high-quality product when expert advice could have prevented it. One such service is wine filtration. Wineries often rely on a mobile filtration company to remove the yeast or recover valuable wine from the lees, rescue spoiled or smoke-tainted wine, or undertake de-alcoholization.
The company many winemakers turn to for these challenges is Winetech, one of the largest and oldest mobile filtration companies in the US wine industry. Winetech owners, Stefano Migotto and Valentina Guolo-Migotto, both grew up in Northern Italy. Stefano grew up helping in, and eventually leading, the family winery. After earning his enology degree, Stefano moved to Napa Valley and co-founded Ca’ Momi Winery with Valentina and 3rd business partner Dario De Conti. Valentina and Stefano started Winetech in 1998 when they saw the growth in demand for filtration services. Today, Stefano brings his knowledge gleaned from 23 years of solving problems for concerned winemakers at hundreds of wineries.
Stefano Migotto
“Our company takes pride in the integrity of our work,” says Stefano. “If we truly believe that we can help our customer improve their wine, we will take on the job. We assess each request as winemakers, and if we believe we cannot improve the wine, we will turn it down. We make the decision that is in the best interest of the quality of our customers’ wine.”
“I grew up in St. Helena,” adds Winetech Manager Ivan Ramirez, “so working with customers is like working with friends, and you’re always honest with friends.”
Ivan Ramirez
Winetech differentiates itself by having trained technicians on-site at all times, both to answer questions and to ensure machines are not left unattended. That way, if something goes wrong, like a membrane breaking, a technician is there to catch it quickly so it doesn’t compromise the entire batch. This approach also prevents over processing the wine, which can happen in a more automated method.
“Our technicians and operators are highly trained,” says Stefano. “They train with senior technicians or work in house at our winery before working with a customer. The same is true for the machines we build; we test them in-house before they go out. We want our customers to have as few surprises as possible.”
“We’re not simply a service company that delivers filtration technologies,” says Business Development Manager Sean Rooney, “but a company of winemakers who can discuss the best direction for improving the product with other winemakers. We stay true to saying what we will do and then do what we say.”
Winetech provides mobile services to wineries, breweries and cideries from Temecula to Walla Walla, WA and custom-builds systems for companies throughout the US. For more information, contact an expert at filtration@winetech.us .
