November 19, 2025

Case study: Wine press for Styrian cheese

What is a WOTTLE wine press doing in an Upper Styrian dairy? Quite simply, it presses curd cheese and whey mixtures! However, this required a number of technical adaptations that were implemented specifically for this use case. The result proves the potential of WOTTLE press technology for other areas of application as well.

“Pressing the curd-whey mixture has always required a certain amount of manual effort,” says Siegfried Bärnthaler, operations manager at the Upper Styrian Dairy in Knittelfeld, explaining his motivation for seeking an alternative to conventional hydraulic pressing technology. Until now, the curd whey mixture obtained from skimmed milk using heat and bacterial cultures had been pressed into curd in a tub. “After each pressing process, the mass is turned over by hand and pressed again until the required dry matter content of 50% is reached.” This labor- and time-intensive process in the production of the well-known product Steirerkäse has now become significantly more efficient.

It all started with a question

In the past, the dairy had already conducted trials with fruit presses, but the results were unsatisfactory due to excessive residual moisture. Online research led Bärnthaler to WOTTLE: “So I asked whether a wine press could also be used to extract juice from a mixture of curd cheese and whey.” Sounds strange? Not to Thomas Fischer, who received this question in his capacity as a technical sales representative at WOTTLE: “When wine is pressed, the waste remains in the press body. The product, i.e., the grape juice, drips out into the tub at the bottom. So it’s exactly the opposite.” However, that was only the most obvious peculiarity, because: “In our first tests with a 500 press on site, it immediately became clear that the screens also had to be designed differently.”

Specially developed whey sieve

While the sieves of WOTTLE wine presses are slotted, the hole pattern appeared ideal for the desired application – however, the dimensions were still open. “In joint trials, we approached the ideal hole diameter of 1.5 mm,” says Bärnthaler, explaining the desired effects: “On the one hand, it is crucial that the cheese particles remain in the curd as far as possible instead of running off with the whey. On the other hand, the sieves should not clog up or leave residues behind.” After just a few tests, these goals were achieved, so that the next step was to determine the required size class. “We currently process 12,000 liters of raw material into 1,200 kilograms of curd cheese – per day,” says Bärnthaler, summarizing the basis for the decision to use a 7500 press. “But that was just the start of the second stage of our development work.”

Hygiene standards are a major issue

Cleaning-in-place (CIP) systems are common in the food industry. “After each pressing cycle, the press body must be cleaned with a spray nozzle,” says Bärnthaler, describing the scenario for which a solution had to be found. “Access was provided by the central filling system. What was missing was communication between our control system and the CIP system so that the press basket would remain in the specified position during cleaning,” says Fischer, describing the answer. However, food hygiene standards required further changes: “The attachment of the membrane in the press basket also had to be modified to prevent the formation of bacterial colonies.” After all, the membrane, which is inflated by compressed air, is in direct contact with the whey. “The fastening was therefore moved behind the membrane. This required an additional opening to allow access from the outside for service purposes. The cut of the membrane material also had to be adjusted accordingly.”

Impressive results

After around a year of development and the first few weeks of live operation, Bärnthaler is satisfied. The targeted goal of increasing efficiency has been achieved: “In addition to three manual interventions, we also save time – around 90 minutes per pressing process, which also runs completely autonomously.” Thanks to the development partnership with WOTTLE, the in-house maintenance team also gained the necessary technical knowledge. “Being independent throughout the year was very important to us!” Last but not least, the quality of the product is also impressive: “The gradual adjustment of pressing pressure and pressing times results in a much more homogeneous curd mass than before – we are excited to see how this will affect our Styrian cheese.”

7. Mai 2025

Wottle remains a partner for winegrowers

As the new majority shareholder, the Pure Investments investor group and its restructuring professionals are supporting the further realignment of Wottle. Thomas Pleli becomes an additional managing director.

“Austrian wine is something special – just like Wottle,” says Nikolaus Kretz, Managing Partner of Pure Investments, explaining the Austrian investor group’s commitment. “As a partner to winegrowers, Wottle develops innovative presses with excellent technology and regional service. This will remain the case with us as a long-term partner!”

Wottle back on track

“A key step is the focus on the core competence of wine presses,” analyzes restructuring specialist Thomas Pleli. “We also see the high-quality presses as the economic basis for the future of Wottle.” This will also secure future innovations for the competing winegrowers.

Use press expertise for other markets too

Pleli sees the pressing process, which is tailored to the respective grape variety and degree of ripeness, as a springboard into other markets: “This pressing technology expertise is also interesting in other areas.” The mechanical engineering specialist even has dairies in mind: “Any adaptations can be implemented efficiently.” Wottle can therefore look forward to a secure future.

Message from 2024

Wottle receives Austria Vin Award

We are extremely proud to have received the Austro Vin Award 2024 in the Cellar Technology category for our “Smart Pneumatic Wine Press TPG/TPGN”. This award honors not only our innovation, but also the commitment of our entire team to excellence in cellar technology.

Our intelligent pneumatic wine press TPG/TPGN has been specially developed to take the winemaking process to a new level. With a closed pressing system that is internet-enabled, we not only enable a cloud connection, but also the possibility of remote maintenance. During the pressing process, moisture, temperature and pH value are automatically measured, and the data obtained is stored and status messages are sent directly to the cell phone.

Particular efficiency and versatility

A particular highlight is our specially developed algorithm, which optimizes positioning accuracy during operation. This innovative function, in combination with the option of must fractionation depending on pH value or must pressure, makes our wine press not only more efficient, but also more versatile.

The automatic control of angle seat valves or downstream feed pumps further contributes to the rationalization of the process. We have also thought about practicality by integrating sliding splash plates and the Wottle central clamp to ensure easy cleaning.

This award is not only a recognition of our efforts, but also a confirmation that we are contributing to innovation in cellar technology with our smart pneumatic wine press. We are determined to continue developing top-quality products that meet the needs of winegrowers.

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