Native yeasts - what’s the deal here?
Knowledgable guests at the winery often ask me if we use ‘native yeasts.’ Whether we allow the naturally occuring yeast on the grape skins to be in charge, or do we ‘innoculate’ with ‘factory yeasts.’ The issue for me is mostly about a proper balance between modern science and old-school winemaking. We know that prior to Louis Pasteur, the great winemakers of old did not know what exactly made grapes ferment; they had no microscope and little concept of microbes. With few scientific tools, they had to rely on their wits and generations of experience built on trial and error to make delicious wine. But modern science has isolated those very same grape yeasts, identified the charactertisitcs of each, propogated them, and put them in the hands of winemakers. So a decision must be made. Roll the dice with native yeasts, or employ modern tools? There is a time for respecting the old ways and a place for modern science. Nothing replaces the winemakers constant and vigilant attention during fermentation. Great care is required in the handling of fruit - from picking to destemming to fermentation. It would be a grave mistake to turn that hands-on process over to automation. But winemakers who extol the virtues of naturals yeasts are rolling the dice on the wine taste profile. Nobody, including me wants anything foreign in their wine. But in the end, the decision to employ ‘naturally occuring’ yeasts may be more about marketing - “we use only natural blah blah blah.” Applying the best that modern science has to offer as a tool to better winemaking - and this includes selecting the perfect natural yeasts from reliable modern sources is a smart move.