WINETECH Technical Yearbook 2021

PRACTICAL IN THE CELLAR | AUGUST 2021

VELD FIRES CAUSED SERIOUS DAMAGE in some of the Australian and Californian wine regions over recent years. Although not in the same magnitude, the problem has also occurred in South Africa. Winemakers must consequently ensure that they have the latest information to address the problem. The challenge in the treatment of wines spoiled by smoke is to ascertain which compounds are responsible and to what extent it must be removed, without damaging the sensory composition of the wine. Wood maturation can for example contribute to some of these compounds and must not be removed completely. Some of the compounds are also associated with Brettanomyces spoilage. It is thus important that the sensory threshold concentrations of such compounds are known. Some of the compounds that cause the smoke spoilage of grapes are indicated in Table 1. AWRI (Australian Wine Research Institute) research indicated that most consumers dislike the compounds contained by smoke-tainted wines. A potential problem solution is the blending of the wine to a level below the observation value of the specific compound(s). It was however

Smoke in vineyard.

CHARL THERON: Private consultant KEYWORDS: Smoke spoilage, spoilage compounds. The smoke spoilage of wine

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