Esters in Wine - Too Fruity or Not Too Fruity - that is the public question

There was a pretty good article put out this week on SevenFiftyDaily explaining the basics of understanding esters in winemaking. This is something that we as wine professionals have to learn and understand, We need to also anticipate how it influences the wine style now and in the near term, but also how these flavors evolve over time. While it is true that much wine is consumed reasonably quick after it is made/purchased, we do have wines that will be around for a period of time - sometimes in our cellars for years.



My job as a buyer is based in part on my ability to understand the wine components and flavors, and make sure they match my guest's tastes and expectations, are appropriate for the quality/price being suggested, as well as the wine's ability to pair with my location's menu and cuisine. A complex subject such as esters and their impact on the wine style is critical to making sure there are appropriate wines on my lists. Cut-sheets for wines that come across my desk are often vague, but knowing if a wine is fermented cool, and even the yeast strain used for ferment, goes a long way to helping understand what I am tasting and what I may be buying.

I strongly encourage wineries to divulge as much info as possible (labeling laws anyone?), and it is therefore equally my responsibility to learn as much as possible about the yeasts, ferment and aging techniques, as well as all of the other aspects of the winemaking process. An educated buyer can be a little dangerous, but a studied buyer will in the long run be a great decision maker.

Here are a couple study questions from this article to put into your study deck...

Q - What are the two most important factors affecting the formation of esters in wine?
A - Yeast strains and Fermentation temperatures

Q - With regard to esters, what do

• neutral yeasts do?
• aromatic yeasts do?

A - Neutral yeasts produce less esters, while aromatic yeasts produce more esters

Q - A winemaker that wants to create a high ester wine will usually do what?

A - the following

• use an aromatic yeast
• clarify the must
• ferment as at as cold a temperature as possible
• while fewer esters are created at colder temps, it is thought more are retained by the cold temps

This last question seemed to be a little bit of contradiction, even in the article itself, which stated that some also believe that higher concentrations of esters are formed during higher temp ferments. The difference being that the actual perception of the higher temp esters is different than lower temp esters, which tend to be more fruity and tropical in nature, while the higher temp esters were more floral. The perception of tropical fruit esters, especially in more aromatic white wines with higher acids (NZ SB anyone?), would perhaps be more noticeable than the floral ester components in a higher pH red fermented at a warmer temps (say WA State Merlot).