Characteristics of sparkling base wines affecting foam behavior

Forty-four base wines, from the three white varieties for the production of sparkling wine most used in the Apellation (Certified Brand of Origin) cava, were analyzed to evaluate their foam capacity. The wines were from three different harvests and produced in eight different wineries. Foaming properties, determined with Mosalux, were affected by variety, harvest, and winemaking process. In foaming, there were two independent phenomena, foam formation and time stability, which were affected by different compounds: Proteins and acids produced more foam in wines, while low acidity, amino acids, and proteins had a negative correlation with time stability. The must extraction by crusher, static settling, and prefermentative fining with bentonite (dose < 20 g/100 L) were the winery factors that were most favorable for the foaming properties of the wines studied. Xarel.lo was the variety with the best foaming properties.