Free tools for winemakers
Grape yield calculator
Wine and bottles from a weight of grapes
Full bottles
Type the grape weight, the yield, the losses and the bottle size.
Typical starting points: red is pressed after fermenting on the skins, white and rosé are pressed before fermentation. Use your own press yield if you know it.
Bottle size
This is an estimate. The press, the grape variety and how ripe the grapes are all change the yield.
How do we calculate this?
The exact formulas used in this tab:
What this calculator does
Works out how much wine a weight of grapes makes, after losses to lees and racking, and how many full bottles and cases that fills.
- Cases of 12, of 24 for 187 mL splits and smaller bottles, or of 6 for magnums.
- It starts from a typical yield for red or for white and rosé; if you know your own press yield, type it in instead.
The formula
Wine (L) = grapes (kg) × yield (L/kg) × (1 − losses % ÷ 100)Typical yield: red 0.70 L/kg, white or rosé 0.62 L/kgFull bottles = wine (mL) ÷ bottle size (mL), rounded downCases = full bottles ÷ 24 for 187 mL or smaller, ÷ 12 below 1.5 L, ÷ 6 for magnums (none for bigger formats), rounded down; the rest are loose1 lb = 0.453592 kg · 1 US gal = 3.78541 L
Worked example
- 500 kg of red grapes
- Typical yield: 0.70 L/kg
- Lees and racking: 5%
- 750 mL bottles
- Wine from the grapes 500 × 0.70 = 350 L
- After losses 350 × 0.95 = 332.5 L
- How many bottles 332,500 ÷ 750 = 443.3
- Cases of 12 443 = 36 × 12 + 11
443 full bottles: 36 cases of 12 and 11 over
Questions
How much wine do I get from a kilo of grapes?
As a starting point, about 0.70 L from a kilo of red grapes and 0.62 L from white or rosé, before losses. After 5% for lees and racking that is about 0.67 L and 0.59 L. So one 750 mL bottle takes roughly 1.1 kg of red grapes or 1.3 kg of white.
How much wine from a ton of grapes?
A metric tonne (1,000 kg) of red grapes gives about 665 L of wine after 5% losses: 886 bottles of 750 mL, or 73 cases of 12. A US ton (2,000 lb) gives about 603 L (159 gal): 804 bottles, or 67 cases. White and rosé, at 0.62 L/kg, come out about 11% lower.
Why does red give more wine than white?
Red wine ferments on its skins and is pressed afterwards. By then fermentation has broken the berries down, so more liquid comes out. White and rosé grapes are pressed before fermentation, from whole fruit, and the press leaves more juice behind in the skins.
Are 0.70 and 0.62 L/kg right for my grapes?
They are typical starting points, not a promise. The press, the grape variety, how ripe and juicy the grapes are, and how hard you press all change the yield. Once you have measured your own press yield, type it in the Yield field; anything from 0.3 to 0.9 L/kg is accepted.
How are small bottles, magnums and bigger bottles counted?
As they are usually packed: magnums (1.5 L) in cases of 6, and 187 mL splits and smaller bottles in cases of 24. Bigger bottles ship singly or in cases of 1 to 3, so for them the calculator shows only the bottles and the wine, with no case count. The same 332.5 L fills 221 magnums: 36 cases of 6 and 5 over.
What do the losses cover?
The wine you leave behind before bottling: the lees at the bottom of the tank, what stays in hoses and filters at each racking, and samples. 5% is a common allowance; raise it if you rack or filter often.