OENOLOGICAL CHARACTERISTICS AND VINIFICATION RESULTS OF THE YEAST OF MALAGOUSIA GRAPE ISOLATED IN GREECE

Abstract

Malagousia grapes, selected from 5 different PGI Greek zones, in 3 different growing seasons (2018-2019, 2019-2020, 2020-2021) were collected in the stage of technological maturity. Quantity of 25 Kg grapes fermented spontaneously in 30 l thermo regulated stain steel tanks, produced white wine. The indigenous yeast flora, isolated at three phases of the alcoholic fermentations, was studied. Different yeast species were isolated, purified and characterized. The restriction fragment length polymorphism of PCR-amplified fragments from the rDNA gene cluster (PCR RFLP of rDNA) has been used for the differentiation of yeast species. The standard identification procedure has been performed on representative strains that shared identical RFLP profiles showed great diversity of the yeast population. Including grape berries, must and fermented must, the following yeast species were identified: a number of Pichia and Candida species, Kloeckera apiculata, Cryptococcus curvatus, Metschnikowia pulcherrima, Kluyveromyces, as well as Saccharomyces cerevisiae and Saccharomyces stranieri. We performed microscopic, macroscopic and carbon assimilation tests by API 32C standardized system, biotechnological testing and hydrolase profiling obtained by the API-ZYM system. The most significant findings in population dynamics of yeasts in the
spontaneous fermentations were bigger diversity of different species of Non- Saccharomyces in organic grapes and almost complete absence of non-Saccharomyces species, at least at grapes and at the beginning of the alcoholic fermentations at conventionally cultivated grapes, from all the examined PGI zones in all the three years of the study. The use and enhancement of indigenous yeasts is an increasing trend. Rapid identification of the yeast population is necessary for successful monitoring of the fermentation process and for obtaining a good wine quality as well as contributing to the optimization of Greek wine production.

Keywords: Yeast strain selection, Spontaneous alcoholic fermentation, organic grapes.