WINES

The term wine is applied here to the product made by the alcoholic fermentation of grapes or
grape juice by yeasts and a subsequent aging process. Wines, however, can be produced by the
fermentation of the juices of fruits, berries, rhubarb, dandelions, honey, etc.

Grape wine:-

Grape wines are either red or white.

The red wines, contain the red pigment from the skins of purple or red varieties of grapes, The
wines are made from white grapes or the expressed juice of other grapes,

1. Preparation of juice:-

Grapes are stemmed and crushed by machine to form a MUST

2. Treatment of MUST :

The MUST is treated with sulphur dioxide (75 to 200 ppm) or potassium metabisulfite to inhibit
the growth of undesirable competitors of the wine yeast.

3. Fermentation:-

- Starter culture

A “natural inoculum” (yeast present on the grapes) or more commonly 2 to 5 percent of a

special wine yeast, a strain of Saccharomyces cerevisiae var. ellipsoidus. is added to the must.

- Mixing :

At first the contents of the tank are mixed twice a day to increase aeration and hence
encourage growth of the yeast . The mixing also helps in the extraction of color from the skins
(for red wines).

- Primary fermentation and Alcohol formation :

Stop mixing to develop anaerobic conditions which is favourable to the alcoholic

fermentation.

Active fermentation is allowed

For Red wines: between 24 and 27 C for red wines for 3 to 5 days
For white wines : 10 to 21 C for 7 to 14 days

(Very high temperature inhibits the wine yeasts and permits competing organisms, e.g., the
lactobacilli. to grow and cause defects; Too low a temperature slows action of the wine yeasts
and permits wild yeasts, lactic acid bacteria, and other organisms to grow. )
-Secondary fermentation :

The fermented juice is placed in a storage tank under a light pressure of carbon dioxide for the
secondary fermentation for 7 to 11 days at about 21 to 29 C.

Here the remaining sugar is fermented if a dry wine is desired.

4. Storing and ageing :-

Flash -pasteurized before aging (optional) followed by cooling for few days

Filtered wine is filtered. and transferred into wooden tanks (usually of white oak or redwood)

Final aging may be in the bottle.

Note : Aging for months or years results in desirable changes in body and flavor of the wine,
giving it the aroma

Microbiology:-

The grapes when crushed have a variety of microorganisms on their surfaces, including yeasts
and bacteria. Not only is the surface flora of the grape present, but also an array of contaminants
from the soil.

To suppress these organisms the wine maker adds sulphur dioxide or sulphite or less commonly
pasteurizes the must.

During early stages, growth of the yeast is favored by aeration of the must; later, anaerobic
conditions favor the alcoholic fermentation by the yeasts, liberating carbon dioxide and ethyl
alcohol, both of which help inhibit organisms other than the wine yeasts.

The atmosphere of carbon dioxide above the wine during the secondary fermentation prevents
the growth of aerobic contaminants, such as the acetic acid bacteria.

The pasteurization that follows, although not for that purpose, reduces the numbers of
microorganisms that later might cause spoilage (“diseases”) of the wine.

Malolactic fermentation may take place by contamination from tanks, barrels etc