Regional Institute of Wine and Oil

Yeasts in Linosa vineyards, research published

The study on the populations of yeasts of oenological interest found on the grapes of the island of Linosa which the Regional Institute of Wine and Oil has conducted since 2009, in collaboration with the University of Palermo.

The forthcoming scientific article, entitled Isolation, identification and oenological characterization of non-Saccharomyces yeasts in a Mediterranean island, bears the signature of Daniele Oliva, senior biologist at IRVO, and is already available online on the journal's website (http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/lam.12599/abstract ).

The work accounts for the biodiversity found in the vineyards and, more importantly, identifies a new strain of yeast capable of producing more aromatic wines. The results of the Biotechnology Unit are therefore enriched which, after having selected numerous yeast strains from the ancient wineries of south-eastern Sicily, one of which is now marketed throughout the world, has been working on "non-Saccharomyces" yeasts in recent years. , one of the new frontiers of oenology.

Excellent results have already been obtained in some Sicilian wineries, within the Process and product innovation project in the Sicilian wine supply chain, with the production of particularly soft and rounded red wines in the mouth thanks to the use of a strain of C. zemplinina isolated a few years ago in the Trapani area (https://progettoinnovazione.wordpress.com/piano-di-lavoro/azione-1/ ).

The new yeast isolated in Linosa will instead be used for the production of white wines with greater aromatic content.