The 5 basic stages for the production of wine in the traditional way are listed below. Wine producers usually follow these five steps. However, they often diverge or add variations as the process progresses to make their wine unique.

• Harvesting of grapes

Grapes are harvested at the right time and when they are ripe. However, even in the same vineyard not all bunches ripen at the same time. An indicator of maturity, besides taste, is wasps, bees and birds which start tasting the berries. If it has rained the day before, at least 3 days must pass before harvest. This period is important because it allows the yeast, which is necessary for alcoholic fermentation, to grow back in the grape skins. Grapes are picked by hand, bunch by bunch, and placed in baskets and various other containers. The picking of grapes, the harvest, has been a celebration for all wine-producing regions and lasted 2-3 days. During the harvest the songs of the harvest are sung.

• Stomping of grapes

Grape-stomping is done with foot, which is the simplest and most traditional method. Whole grape bunches are placed in a container, simple plastic vat or special place, and the stomping starts by both men, women and children. Feet should be clean. The stomping of the grapes was considered a joyous event during which various wry songs were sung.

• Production of must (glefkos)

The aim of the above process is the crushing of grape berries and the production of must. Must is essentially the freshly pressed grape juice that contains the peels, seeds, and solid parts of the grape. The must ran from the “koutsounaraki” in a stone trough or in a half-jar and from there with a container (the kafki) they filled the skin, to transfer it to the wine barrel. When stompers finished treading, they stacked tsipouro (marcs) at the side of the stomping vat (linos), placed a wide board, usually a door, and climbed up so that the must would drain.” The stomped grapes were stored in special containers or barrels.

• Alcoholic fermentation

After crushing and pressing, we transfer the must to the container or barrel where the next important phase, fermentation, will take place. The must or juice can begin to ferment naturally within 6-12 hours when it is helped by wild yeasts in the air and when the appropriate temperature is reached. For this reason, it is transferred to an underground cellar.

• Storage – maturation – aging of wine

When alcoholic fermentation is complete, there are two options. Either the wine is transferred to another container where it will be stored or it is left in the same container. In both options it is a prerequisite that the wine does not come into contact with air or oxygen. Normally, the wine is immediately consumable, however there is always the possibility for the wine to stay in the container for about a month in order to ripen. Aging is a process that will lead a wine to evolution, to maturation, so that over time it will be perfectly soft, elegant and friendly.