launch of the yeast
Zymaflore FX10® by LAFFORT
for the 2008 Northern Hemisphere Harvest.
Zymaflore FX10®, the new yeast for iconic red wines with structure and elegance, isolated with the new directed breeding technique.
Zymaflore FX10® is the new, enhanced version of Zymaflore F10®, the reference strain for iconic and terroir wines. It was isolated through successive backcrosses, also called directed breeding, which is a significant technological breakthrough, allowing extreme precision in the selection of strain characteristics. Zymaflore FX10® combines fermentative security and the organoleptic properties of Zymaflore F10®, namely its contribution to the structure and elegance of the wines.
Zymaflore FX10® has already been evaluated and approved by many Grand Crus!
Zymaflore FX10® : elegance in heritage
The directed breeding technique, used now for the first time in oenology, consists of hybridizing two strains, knowing precisely the characteristics of each that must be retained or introduced. Directed breeding is a real innovation compared with simple breeding (hybridization): breeding is a single crossing of two strains, and one looks amongst the progeny for the hybrid possessing most of the parents’ characteristics. However, owing to genetic complexity, some traits cannot be obtained with only a single cross, and the success of simple breeding is thus sometimes unpredictable. In contrast, the succession of backcrosses used in the directed breeding technique allows the introduction of a singular trait to an existing strain, without modifying its other characteristics.
Additionally, the fundamental research led by LAFFORT has localized the genes governing resistance to high temperatures and membrane sterol deficiency. This has been helpful to “renew” both Zymaflore F10® and the ‘Bordeaux blend’ style wine produced from it, and to make it a superior strain in fermentation terms. Zymaflore FX10® thus retains more than 93% of the F10® genome but, like the other hybrid strains (Zymaflore X5®, RX60®, X16®), it also ensures fermentative security, even under difficult conditions and with high alcohol levels.
Zymaflore FX10® was tested in numerous wineries in France, Italy, Spain, California, and Oregon during the 2007 harvest, as well as in Chile, South Africa and Australia in 2007/2008. All winemakers who have compared Zymaflore FX10® with Zymaflore F10® have testified the similarity of the resultant wines, and those who have compared it with other red strains have unanimously appreciated the elegance of the wines and the clean fermentation kinetics.
Many comparative trials have been performed using Zymaflore F10 and Zymaflore FX10®. The fermentation kinetics are identical at the beginning of the fermentation: extraction in the hydro-alcoholic phase works in the same way in both cases. The kinetics differ at the end of the fermentation, as Zymaflore FX10® finishes quickly (kinetics and wine analyses available, please contact us). In triangular difference tasting there is no statistical difference (1%) between the two wines.
The objective has been met: Zymaflore FX10® retains the elegance propriety of Zymaflore F10®, while fermenting significantly better. Zymaflore FX10® is resistant up to 15.5%v/v, and has very low volatile acidity production (up to 25% less than control yeasts).
Zymaflore FX10®, like F10®, is very expressive of the terroir (aromatic neutrality). It also has high polysaccharide release compared with the control strains (different strains used in the trials; genetic identification systematically performed during fermentation; the control was the strain usually used by the winery for this type of wine).
Lastly, wines fermented with Zymaflore FX10® have an impressive tannin structure, but the tannin reactivity is low (silky tannins):
Wine |
FX10® |
Control |
Tannins (g/L) |
3.6 |
3.5 |
Tannin mean degree of polymerization |
3.7 |
3.6 |
Gelatin index (tannin reactivity) |
47 |
52 |
These wines (Cabernet Sauvignon 2007, Bordeaux) have the same tannin intensity, but the Zymaflore FX10® wine is less astringent and tannin reactivity is lower. The tasters have described this wine as fruity and elegant.
Do not hesitate to contact Charlotte Gourraud-Augustin, Fermentation Product Manager:
charlotte.gourraud@laffort.com
LAFFORT
BP 17
33015 Bordeaux cedex
Telephone : 05 56 86 53 04, Fax : 05 56 86 30 50
www.laffort.com or info@laffort.com
