Malolactic fermentation
- Key People:
- Robert Mondavi
- Related Topics:
- Bordeaux wine
- champagne
- Burgundy wine
- Chablis
- red wine
Enologists have known for some time that young wines frequently have a secondary evolution of carbon dioxide, occurring sometime after the completion of alcoholic fermentation. This results from malolactic fermentation, in which malic acid is broken down into lactic acid and carbon dioxide. The fermentation is caused by enzymes produced by certain lactic-acid bacteria.
Flavour by-products of unknown composition are also produced during this fermentation. Malolactic fermentation is desirable when new wines are too high in malic acid, as in Germany, or when particular nuances of taste and flavour are desired, as in the red wines of Burgundy and Bordeaux in France. In other regions, some producers may encourage malolactic fermentation, and others may discourage it, depending upon the particular character desired in the wine. In all regions, this second fermentation is somewhat capricious. One product, diacetyl (a flavour and aroma agent), is apparently beneficial at low levels and undesirable at higher levels.
At low temperatures, malolactic fermentation proceeds slowly, if at all. German cellars are often equipped with steam pipes, raising the temperature to encourage this fermentation. The bacteria may fail to grow because of a deficiency or complete absence of essential amino acids. Most lactic-acid bacteria growth can be inhibited by the presence of 70 to 100 milligrams per litre of sulfur dioxide.
Excessive malolactic fermentation may produce wines too low in acidity (flat tasting) or with undesirable odours (mousy, sauerkraut, or diacetyl). Such faults may be prevented by earlier racking, filtration, and addition of sulfur dioxide.
Clarification
Some wines deposit their suspended material (yeast cells, particles of skins, etc.) very quickly, and the supernatant wine remains nearly brilliant. This is particularly true when 50-gallon wooden barrels, which have greater surface-to-volume ratio than larger containers, are employed. The rough interior of wooden cooperage facilitates deposition of suspended material. Other wines, particularly in warm regions or when large tanks are used, may remain somewhat cloudy for long periods. Removal of the suspended material during aging is called clarification. The major procedures involved are fining, filtration, centrifugation, refrigeration, ion exchange, and heating.
Fining
Fining is an ancient practice in which a material that aids clarification is added to the wine. The main processes involved are adsorption, chemical reaction and adsorption, and possibly physical movement. Proteins and yeast cells are adsorbed on fining agents such as bentonite (a type of clay formed mainly of montmorillonite) or gelatin. Chemical reactions occurring with tannins and gelatin may be followed by adsorption of suspended compounds. If an inert material, such as silica, is added to a cloudy wine, some clarification will occur simply by the movement of the particles of inert silica through the wine. This action probably occurs to a certain extent with the addition of any fining agent.
Bentonite has largely replaced all other fining agents. Such fining agents as gelatin, casein, isinglass, albumin, egg white, nylon, and PVPP (polyvinyl pyrrolidone) may be used for special purposes, including removal of excess tannin or colour.
Excessive amounts of metals, particularly iron and copper, may be present in the wine, usually from contact with iron or metal surfaces. These result in persistent cloudiness and require removal by such special fining materials as potassium ferrocyanide (blue fining), long recommended in Germany. Cufex, a proprietary product containing potassium ferrocyanide, may be used in the United States under strict control. Phytates have been used for removing iron. In modern winery operations excessive metal content is rare, mainly owing to the use of stainless steel equipment.
Filtration
Filtration is another ancient practice, and early filters consisted of rough cloth-covered screens through which the wine was poured. Modern filter pads are made of cellulose fibres of various porosities or consist of membrane filters, also in a range of porosities. The pore size of some filters is sufficiently small to remove yeast cells and most bacterial cells, but filters operate not only because of pore size but also by a certain amount of adsorption. Diatomaceous earth-filter aids, commonly added to the wine during filtration, increase the functional life of a filter by retarding pore clogging.
Centrifugation
Centrifugation, or high-speed spinning, used to clarify musts, is also applied to wines that are difficult to clarify by other means. This operation requires careful control to avoid undue oxidation and loss of alcohol during the process.
Refrigeration
Refrigeration aids wine clarification in several ways. Temperature reduction often prevents both yeast growth and the evolution of carbon dioxide, which tends to keep the yeast cells suspended. Carbon dioxide is more soluble at lower temperatures. A major cause of cloudiness is the slow precipitation of potassium acid tartrate (cream of tartar) as the wine ages. Rapid precipitation is induced by lowering the temperature to −7 to −5 °C (19 to 23 °F) for one or two weeks. If the resulting wine is filtered off the tartrate deposit, tartrate precipitation will not usually cause clouding later.
Ion exchange
Another method of tartrate stabilization is to pass a portion of wine through a device called an ion exchanger. If this ion exchanger is charged with sodium, it will replace the potassium in potassium acid tartrate with sodium, making a more soluble tartrate. Usually, if the potassium content of the blend of either treated or untreated wine is reduced to about 500 milligrams per litre, no further precipitation will occur. Exceptions may occur, however, and to be safe, tartrate and potassium contents and pH are included in the calculation. The use of ion exchange is illegal in several countries.
Heating
Many wines contain small amounts of proteins that may cause clouding either by precipitation or by reacting with copper or other metals to form aggregates that in turn form clouds. The use of bentonite removes some protein, and protein adsorption is increased if the wine is warm when fined. Pasteurization at 70 to 82 °C (158 to 180 °F) also can be used to precipitate proteins, but in modern practice this process is seldom employed to aid clarification.