Rather than having a dedicated crusher, whole grape clusters move directly from the loading hopper to a destemming grate that runs the length of the machine. The destemming shaft separates the stems from the fruit, allowing the whole grapes to drop through the holes in the grate while the stems are carried out though a chute at the end of the machine. A second auger feeds the destemmed grapes into the on-board must pump, where the centrifugal force of the stainless-steel impellers breaks the skin of the grapes, compressing the grapes and breaking the skins enough to extract free-run juice.
Destemming before crushing results in cleaner must with less debris and astringent tannins. Gentle crushing of the pump leaves grape seeds intact. Larger units have full destemming drum and two-speed operation. Single motor makes for easy operation.
The must pump cannot be bypassed. The type of pump and the speed / power of it cannot be changed the adjust the level of crushing performed.
