Choosing The Right Wine Making Yeast

Choosing the right wine making yeast is a critical part of a successful fermentation.There are many factors that go into choosing a wine making yeast. This is the second most important decision you’ll have to make next to picking the grape varietal to make your wine from.

Choosing the right yeast is important for two reasons. First, different yeasts produce different flavor and aroma profiles to finished wines. This has to do with how the yeast processes the must when it’s digesting the sugars and nutrients. Continue reading “Choosing The Right Wine Making Yeast”

The Great Riesling Yeast Experiment (Part II)

The saga continues with the racking of my experimental Riesling fermented with two different yeast strains. Read this if you missed part one.

Fermenting the same Riesling with two different yeast strains.Up to this point the two batches of Riesling have been fermenting separately.  One in a primary fermentation bucket and the other in a six gallon carboy. Little could be observed of the two wines.

However, I recently got a chance to see, smell, and taste the two Riesling batches when I racked them into their respective carboys. Here’s what I found. Continue reading “The Great Riesling Yeast Experiment (Part II)”

The Great Riesling Yeast Experiment (Part I)

Racking the Riesling from the primary to secondary fermenter.Yeast can have a profound affect on the final flavor and aroma profiles of a wine or so we’re told. But how much of a difference is there really from one yeast to another? To answer this question I set up the Great Riesling Yeast Experiment.

In this experiment I set out to ferment one Riesling kit in two, three gallon batches with two different yeast strains. Continue reading “The Great Riesling Yeast Experiment (Part I)”

The Epic Rise and Tragic Fall of a Yeast Empire

Yeast is the secret to making wine. Without it alcoholic fermentation wouldn't be possible.
Yeasts Conquering the land of Pinot Noir

The unfermented must is a vast and plentiful breeding ground for yeast. Food in the form of dissolved oxygen and sugar abounds. For the right strain of yeast this is the perfect place to establish a thriving empire.

The winemaker sets the yeast in motion. They hydrates the yeast, preparing them to conquer this new-found domain. Once the yeast is awakened they are transplanted to this new land. Continue reading “The Epic Rise and Tragic Fall of a Yeast Empire”