Secondary fermentation is often considered the secret weapon in winemaking. While primary fermentation does the heavy lifting—transforming sugar into alcohol—secondary fermentation is where the finesse happens. This stage is crucial for enhancing your wine’s finish, balancing flavours, refining mouthfeel, and ensuring long-term stability. By choosing the right products during this phase, winemakers can significantly improve the overall quality of their wine. In this blog, we’ll explore the importance of secondary fermentation and the product solutions available to help you craft exceptional wines with a flawless finish.
Why Secondary Fermentation Matters
Secondary fermentation is key to the development of a wine’s final character. This process smooths out acidity, adds complexity, and enhances texture. It’s also essential for stabilising the wine and reducing unwanted compounds that can negatively affect the final product. Whether you’re producing red, white, or sparkling wines, mastering secondary fermentation will bring out the best in your vintage.
However, achieving consistent, high-quality results during secondary fermentation requires the right tools and ingredients. Here are three standout product solutions that can help you perfect your wine’s finish.
Lalvin EC1118™: The Workhorse Yeast for Secondary Fermentation
Lalvin EC1118™ is a go-to yeast for winemakers, especially during secondary fermentation. Renowned for its robustness and versatility, this yeast is ideal for wines that need to undergo both primary and secondary fermentations, including sparkling wines and high-alcohol styles.
Key Benefits:
- Neutral flavour profile: Lalvin EC1118™ allows the natural aromas and flavours of your wine to shine through without interference, making it an excellent choice for wines where you want to highlight varietal characteristics.
- High alcohol tolerance: This yeast can withstand alcohol levels up to 18%, making it perfect for secondary fermentation in sparkling wines and late-harvest wines.
- Consistency: Its reliable fermentation kinetics ensure steady, consistent results, minimising the risk of fermentation issues like stuck ferments.
NEO® CRISPY: Elevate Mouthfeel and Balance
NEO® CRISPY is an innovative product designed to enhance the crispness and texture of your wine, especially in white and rosé varieties. Secondary fermentation is the ideal stage to introduce NEO® CRISPY, as it helps balance acidity and improves the overall mouthfeel of the wine.
Key Benefits:
- Improved texture: NEO® CRISPY contributes to a cleaner, crisper mouthfeel, giving your wine a refreshing and elegant finish.
- Enhanced clarity: It also aids in refining the clarity of your wine, ensuring a visually appealing final product.
- Balanced acidity: Perfect for wines that need a touch of acidity balance, NEO® CRISPY rounds out flavours, resulting in a more harmonious profile.
Lalvin DV10™: Sparkling Wine Specialist
Lalvin DV10™ is a top choice for sparkling wine producers, offering a clean, reliable fermentation even in challenging conditions. It performs exceptionally well in cooler temperatures, preserving delicate aromatics during secondary fermentation.
Key Benefits:
- Aromatic preservation: DV10™ excels at protecting the subtle aromatics in sparkling and white wines, ensuring your wine retains its fresh, vibrant character.
- Cool fermentation capabilities: This yeast is ideal for secondary fermentation, particularly in sparkling wines, where cooler temperatures are often required.
- Consistency and stability: Lalvin DV10™ ensures a steady and reliable fermentation, critical for producing high-quality sparkling wines that are clear and well-balanced.
Bringing It All Together
Secondary fermentation is a critical stage in winemaking, and the products you choose can make all the difference. By leveraging the strengths of Lalvin EC1118™, NEO® CRISPY, and Lalvin DV10™, winemakers can optimise fermentation, refine the wine’s texture, and balance flavours for a perfect finish. These solutions allow you to tailor the secondary fermentation process to your specific needs, whether you’re crafting a crisp white, a structured red, or an elegant sparkling wine.
With these tools in your winemaking arsenal, you can confidently navigate secondary fermentation, knowing you have the right products to elevate your wine and create a superior final product.
Conclusion
Secondary fermentation isn’t just a technical step in winemaking—it’s an opportunity to refine your wine and enhance its quality. By incorporating high-performance products like Lalvin EC1118™, NEO® CRISPY, and Lalvin DV10™ into your fermentation process, you can unlock your wine’s full potential and ensure it leaves a lasting impression on the palate.