Perspective Yeast Races for Young Sparkling Wines with a Muscat Aroma

Introduction. In order to solve the growing demand for Muscat sparkling wines, some of the Muscat grapes used for the production of liqueur wines should be used as a raw material for sparkling wines. The technology of preparing young sparkling wines has a shorter production cycle. Science-based selection of the yeast race makes it possible to obtain young sparkling wines with a clear and bright Muscat aroma. Study objects and method. The research featured young sparkling wines from White Muscat grapes, produced using different yeasts races. The research involved both standard and modified methods of enochemical analysis. Results and discussion. The LALVIN QA-23 and Odesskiy Cherniy-SD-13 yeast races demonstrated a more active fermentation of Muscat white wort. The Sevastopolskaya 23 sample had in a slower fermentation, which promoted a greater accumulation of bound forms of carbon dioxide (16%). It contained the smallest amount of residual sugars (2 g/dm3) and thriable acids (6 g/dm3) and the largest amount of polyphenols (103 mg/dm3) and amine nitrogen (91 mg/dm3). Two samples accumulated a sufficient amount of free terpenes: 1.16 mg/dm3 for LALVIN QA-23 and 1.13 mg/dm3 for Sevastopolskaya 23. The degustation scores were quite high: LALVIN QA-23 received 9.03 points and Odesskiy Cherniy-SD-13 – 9.02 points, while Sevastopolskaya 23 scored 9.00 points. The LALVIN QA-23 sample proved to have the most pronounced varietal aroma, whereas the Odesskiy Cherniy-SD-13 sample possessed a more complex aromatic complex. Conclusion. The LALVIN QA-23 and Sevastopolskaya 23 yeast races were found suitable for bottle champagnization of young Muscat sparkling wines. They accumulated a sufficient amount of terpene alcohols. The samples had a clear Muscat aroma, harmonious taste, and good typical properties. The new method makes it possible to produce high quality sparkling wines in the harvest year.