Final Report – Funding Cycles 2022 – 2024
Principal Investigator – Charles Edwards, Washington State University, Pullman
Co-PI – Carolyn Ross, Washington State University, Pullman
Summary: Over the past decade, research has focused on the possibility of using non-Saccharomyces yeasts present in regional vineyards as means to enhance wine quality. Past and current research indicates that one species, Mt. pulcherrima, inoculated a few days prior to S. cerevisiae, may be useful as a means to reduce final ethanol concentrations of the resultant wines. Any commercial application of Mt. pulcherrima will require careful addition of YAN (yeast assimilable nitrogen) after addition of the primary fermentation yeast, S. cerevisiae, because of YAN consumption by Mt. pulcherrima.
This research evaluated the role of temperature and SO2 on survivability and metabolism of selected non-Saccharomyces yeasts and determined of sugar concentration (e.g., 24°, 26°, and 28° Brix) on sequential inoculations of non-Saccharomyces and Saccharomyces yeasts into Chardonnay grape juice concentrate.