Making wine is pretty straightforward. Or rather, it was, once upon a time. Today it is more complicated. The fermentation, not least, requires the winegrowers to think carefully. They know that yeast turns the sugar in the grapes into alcohol, that stays in the wine, and to carbon dioxide that dissipates. They also know that yeast is found on the grape’s skin and in varying quantities around the vineyard and the wine cellar. But the big question is: can they trust this yeast? Or, should they instead choose a safer route and buy cultured yeast of the most common species, Saccharomyces cerevisiae, propagated in a laboratory? And thus gain more control over what happens during the fermentation and a more secure end-result?
