Pellenc's New Grape harvester! 99.82% clean grapes. Touch screen controls. Up to 43% percent fuel savings with new engine management system. Tier IV engine. Tighter turning. Faster washing and service. 3x Quieter Cab.

Mechanical grape harvesters, with bow-like rods that knock berries off the cluster to leave the rachis behind on the vine, have been in use for decades. A drawback to mechanical harvesting has been inclusion of leaves, sticks, stems, and other MOG (material other than grapes) with the fruit.

The newest generation of grape harvesters can selectively de-stem and sort MOG in the field, eliminating need for additional sorting and de-stemming at the winery. Last year, Good Fruit Grower reported on new optical sorting technology being used by wineries on the crush pad to cull unwanted grapes, seeds, or stems (read “Optical sorters come to wineries,” November 2014).