Drink Processing
TANKS FOR
EVERYTHING:
A ROUNDUP
OF WHAT’S
TRENDING IN
FERMENTATION
TANKS
By Ken Weaver
W
ith a surge
of newer
offerings in
beverage
industries, including hard
seltzer, kombucha, THC- and
CBD- infused drinks, many
equipment providers that
have traditionally focused on
the wine industry are fi nding
attention for their products
from unexpected places. In
turn, lead times for key items
such as fermentation tanks
and bottling lines have been
higher than usual for many of
these companies, with wine,
beer, cider, spirits, and other
beverage producers having
to adjust accordingly. Spirited
checked in with some of
the key fermentation tank
providers in the United States
to learn what’s changing in
this space.
Custom Focused
Prospero Equipment
Corporation, with offi ces in
New York, California, and
Oregon, caters to a wide
range of beverage producers
and tends to provide turnkey
solutions to its customers.
Prospero carries stainless
steel tanks from Škrlj d.o.o.
in Slovenia, ranging from
around 100 liters up to
about 6,000 gallons (which
is about the largest they can
reasonably ship). Prospero
also offers some tanks from
the manufacturer of its stills,
Barison Industry in Italy, as
well as more budget-minded
options produced in China.
The company does keep
some limited equipment and
tanks onsite at its local offi ces
and can do a modest degree
of color customization and
Drink Asia
36
decoration on the tanks as
well.
Nathaniel Maghanoy, who
works in technical sales
for Prospero, mentions
automation as one of the
main moving pieces lately.
“Automated tanks, due to the
cost of labor, are becoming
really big, even for some
medium-sized wineries,” he
says. Key features include
the ability to program daily
punch-downs and pump-
overs.
Westec Tank & Equipment
Co. in Healdsburg, Calif., is
focused more exclusively on
wine tanks, catwalks, and
related miscellaneous wine
equipment, manufacturing
stainless steel tanks. Tank
size capabilities range from 1
gallon up to 160,000 gallons,
Westec has developed a number of
innovative fermentation tank products
over the years, including six-foot
dimple jackets and removable tank
tops, both of which afford greater
winery fl exibility and accommodate
techniques like extended maceration.
March-April 2020