Differential synthesis of fermentative aroma compounds of two related commercial wine yeast strains

The specific impact of the yeast strain on the wine flavour and aroma has not been well characterised yet because this effect is usually combined with other variables during the winemaking. In this study, the contribution to wine flavour of two Saccharomyces cerevisiae strains widely used in wine production, VIN13 and EC1118, was evaluated after fermentation at 15 degrees C. Chemical defined grape juice media fermented with the EC1118 strain showed higher solvent, fatty and pineapple aroma attributes, while that fermented with the VIN13 strain exhibited higher banana, fruity, yeasty and green attributes. Sensorial and chemical analyses evidenced that the production of flavour-active compounds is significantly affected by the yeast strain, as well as by the temperature of fermentation, as shown by comparing the former data with those from fermentations carried out at 28 degrees C under identical culture conditions. (C) 2009 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.