You have your yeast (the what) and now it is time to decide on how you will allow it to thrive and create your wine (the how).  Before we move ahead with the decision we should take a moment to understand the basic process of making wine from juice.  Here is the formula:

grape juice + yeast = alcohol + heat + carbon dioxide

It’s that simple but there literally hundreds of variables that lead to either “best of show” in an international competition or to a wine that you wouldn’t use to clean paint brushes…..and everything in between.  Temperature control is one of those very important variables (which means the removal of the heat and to what degree – pardon the pun – as per the formula).

We are going to suggest that you choose from one of three fermentation temperatures (11, 13 or 15 Celcius).  Yes, that is a narrow band of temperatures but the results for each choice are VERY different.  We have sophisticated equipment (internal tank chilling) to maintain those precise temperatures as the yeast produce heat while they ferment sugar into alcohol.

We should also note that the white fermentation process is about three weeks long from beginning to end.  Your juice has just begun its journey and it is currently at 11 Celcius.  Now, where will you take it?

The cooler temperature (11 Celcius) will preserve the primary fruit aromas of the juice and keep the wine bright and fresh and terroir expressive.  As the fermentation temperature goes up the fresh fruity flavours become volatile and leave the wine (go into the atmosphere).  At the higher temperatures (15 Celcius) the yeast produce more “jammy” fruit characters.  So your choice is; do you want your wine to be fresh with the primary flavours preserved (11 Celcius), more jammy with more of the preserved fruit characters (15 Celcius), or something in between (13 Celcius).  The choice is yours so please vote now!  Your yeast culture is waiting.

The votes are in and an overwhelming majority of you chose the Yeast Culture EC1118. It would seem as though you are looking for a sense of place and pure expression in your wine.  Congratulations.  Please check out the pictures and video to see your yeast choice being added to the clear myWine vineyard Riesling juice.  We wish you could smell the great aromas as your wine begins to ferment, but instead we can and will show you it “bubbling and brewing” (come on, it’s close to Halloween).  The juice’s journey to wine has begun!!

As we discussed, we are inside the winery now.  Your grapes have been harvested, de-stemmed, crushed and pressed.  The resultant juice is now in a large climate controlled stainless steel tank and it is settling.  You must have clear, settled juice prior to fermentation.  Once the clear juice is racked off of the sediment (grape solids) fermentation can begin.  But which yeast shall we use?

[Show as slideshow]

[View with PicLens]

To begin we should note that the de-stemming, crushing, pressing and settling are all standard practices.  There are no choices here.  The fermenting yeast is another matter all together.  There is a great deal of choice.  All modern wine making facilities use known cultured yeast to ensure that the fermentation process is good.  In nature yeast are all around in the air and on the ground.  Therefore, fermentation of any dissolved sugars (juice) can happen on its own.  But what is the culture doing the fermenting?  Is it a good yeast culture (good wine) or a bad yeast culture (undrinkable stuff).  Modern wineries prefer not to take a gamble and inoculate with a known good yeast culture.  And there are other benefits.  Different good yeast cultures will deliver different taste and texture profiles besides just converting the grape sugars to alcohol.  This is where your choice comes in.

We are suggesting that you choose one of the following three yeast cultures.  Depending upon the overall result that you want choose the appropriate yeast.  You can be pure, enhanced or just plain wacky.

Yeast Culture EC1118: This yeast gives a pure expression of place.  This yeast will ferment the sugars into alcohol while respecting the pure terroir.  This yeast delivers the pure expression of what Mother Nature provides at harvest.

Yeast Culture VL1: This yeast enhances the fruity nature of the wine.  VL1 will make the Riesling taste more tropical.  This type of yeast makes “fruit bomb” types of wine.

Yeast Culture Alchemy: This type of culture is known as a co-fermentor.  There are two types of yeast culture within Alchemy.  This type of yeast delivers a complex body and structure to the wine with a strong mid palette.  In the process of building the wine’s structure this yeast does not respect terroir and does not deliver a sense of place.

There are your three choices.  Please choose wisely as the type of fermentation chosen will clearly set the shell of the taste profile for the resultant bottled wine.