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 The solution for increasing wine alcohol levels is a new one. Well, if you call a 2,000-year solution, new. The secret? New natural yeasts that will produce less alcohol. NOT A PIPE DREAM - TWO EXIST! |
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TAKING CONTROL OF ALCOHOL - AWRI REPORT Cristian Varela, Dariusz Kutyna, Paul A. Henschke, Paul J. Chambers, Markus J. Herderich, Isak S. Pretorius The Australian Wine Research Institute, PO Box 197, Glen Osmond (Adelaide), South Australia 5064, Australia Published with the permission of the AWRI and the Australian and New Zealand Wine Industry Journal. For further information visit www.winebiz.com.au Alcohol is the backbone of wine, yet too much can put a wine off-balance. Taking control of alcohol levels in wine is, therefore, critical to the winemaker’s art; can winemakers bottle the sunshine flavours we expect of Australian wine but leave out some of the alcohol? One of the keys is wine yeast. Previously chosen for their efficiency in converting sunshine into alcohol, we are now generating new strains of yeast that make reduced levels of alcohol; still lots of sunshine in the bottle but with less risk of ‘sunburn’. Getting the alcohol level right in winemaking can be surprisingly difficult. This is particularly evident when grapes are grown where the weather is warm and fruit is given lots of time on the vine for flavour development; in these conditions ‘high alcohol’ can become a problem. Over the past 20 years, the Australian Wine Research Institute has charted an increase in average alcohol levels in Australian wine. In 1984, levels were 12.4% v/v; in 2004, they had risen to 14.2% v/v, and similar stories are heard from around the grapegrowing regions of the world. The 2008 vintage hit another ‘sugar high’ as the heatwave across southern Australia midway through harvest took its toll. Hot weather accelerates ripening, which leads to higher levels of sugar. Higher amounts of sugar lead to higher levels of alcohol. In countries like ours, where the sun shines for long hours and some grapes are left on the vine to create rich, full-bodied flavours, high alcohol is becoming an issue. Wine with high alcohol levels can mean higher costs. In countries where taxes are levied according to ethanol content, high alcohol wines can be taxed out of the market. High alcohol can also compromise flavour, and today’s society is seeking a healthier approach to high alcohol consumption. To tackle the problem, the Australian wine sector is investigating new ways to lower the concentration of ethanol in wine. One strategy is to harvest grapes before they reach full maturity, when the concentration of sugar in the berries is lower. To a degree, this approach is already being used by some winemakers. But, until we understand viticultural factors that advance flavour development in relation to sugar ripeness, this approach can undermine the full-bodied character and ripe fruit flavours for which some Australian wines are known. Removing sugar from grape must before fermentation is another way to lower ethanol but is relatively expensive to carry out. A third strategy used successfully at a number of wineries around the world is to remove alcohol from wine after fermentation. Even this has its drawbacks: it adds to production costs; might impact wine flavour under certain conditions, and not all international markets might accept Australian wine that has undergone this procedure. ... >> click here to download full report
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