Frequently Asked Questions

We provide production-focused laboratory testing for wineries, breweries, cideries, and other fermented beverages.

Some of our most requested services include:

• ABV
• Acids
  • Acetic acid
  • Malic acid
  • Lactic acid
• Cold stability testing (tartrate stability)
• Heat stability testing (protein stability)
  • Bentonite trials
• Carbonation (CO2)
• Residual sugar
• YAN (Yeast Assimilable Nitrogen)
• pH and TA

Check out your industry page for a list of applicable tests.

If your industry isn’t listed, check out the wine page for the largest list of tests offered. Or just reach out and we can answer any and all questions!

If you’re not sure what you need, that’s completely normal. Tell us what stage you’re in and what you’re seeing – we’ll help you figure it out!

Since 2016! And our chemists have been in the industry since before that, so there is a lot of experience in our lab. You can learn more about us on our bio page.

Independent lab testing gives you:

• Intricate knowledge about the product you are perfecting
• Confidence in your own equipment
• Early detection of potential issues (hello, microbes!)
• Clear direction before making treatment decisions
• TTB-Certified results

In short: better quality products you can be confident in serving to consumers.

Our chemists are TTB-Certified and tested by the TTB every 2 years to maintain certification.

Our lab is also a member of Collaborative Testing Services. We, and 90+ other labs, receive identical samples 3x a year for analysis. The results let us know how we are performing compared to other labs and if, for example, one of our pieces of equipment is drifting. If something is off, we can fix it right away so you are always getting the most accurate results possible.

Yes! We provide lab analysis for breweries, including alcohol, carbonation, IBU, calories, and additional chemistry panels upon request.

If you have a specific issue or quality concern, let’s talk through it.

Yes! Check out the wine analysis page for the most complete list of tests or reach out with any questions about specific needs. We are happy to consult on your product and find the right tests for you!

Absolutely! Whether you are home-based or commercial, we are happy to help you perfect your product.

1. Set up an account.
2. Email us your order.
   • Tell us what wines are being submitted and what analyses are being requested.
3. Label each sample clearly.
   • Sample name
   • Company
4. Mail or drop off the package.
   580 Radford Lane, Ste 101
   Charlottesville, VA 22903

*UPS and FedEx are our preferred shippers because they deliver straight to the lab bench.

Easy peasy!

• 2-business days for most analyses.
• Same-day for juice samples.
• 3-business days for bentonite tests.
• 1 week for microbial plating.

If you’re approaching bottling/canning, tell us your deadline – we understand production timelines!

We will email a PDF report to the addresses indicated when the account was set up. Feel free to let us know if we need to add or remove people.

More importantly, we’re available to talk through the reports. We don’t just send numbers and wish you best of luck. We are happy to help you interpret what they mean for your product!

It depends on the test. One 12-oz can or bottle of beer is usually plenty. 50-100 mL of wine/cider/juice is great for most analyses. Stability tests, carbonation, filterability, and microbial plating all require larger volumes – often not more than 2 cans of beer or 750 mL of wine.

Specific volumes are listed on the industry test pages.

If you’re tight on volume, reach out before sending – we can breakdown what is needed for each test, sometimes two tests can be run on the same volume.

A clean bottle with minimal headspace (air). What kinda of bottle? Your choice! We receive all types – from lab tubes and bottles to juice and water bottles to finished products. Whatever you have that fits the sample volume required, works for us.

Want some sterile lab tubes? We would be happy to send them to you.

Check out our handy-dandy distilled ABV infographic to see if we recommend distillation for your type of sample. If you still aren’t sure, we would be happy to help guide your decisions – just ask!

We would be happy to tell you! Let us know which analysis you are curious about.

Putting them on the website makes it bulkier and most of our customers just want to know the result, not how it is done. But we would be happy to nerd out if you are interested!

We will email you an invoice within a week of the report being sent. Terms are Net15.

Invoices can be paid by check (our favorite!), ACH, bank transfer, or credit card.

Want to put a card on file to be automatically charged? Call us with the information and we will take care of it!

Click here to read our full Terms and Conditions.

Probably not. Our staff LOVE their jobs.

A) We are a cool bunch to hang with!

B) One of our core values is work-life balance – and we take it very seriously. Not on-duty? Go away!

C) We are a small crew, so turnover isn’t really a thing.

BUT, we do occasionally offer internships! Reach out to see if there are an planned within the next year.