Influence of Oenococcus oeni and Brettanomyces bruxellensis on Hydroxycinnamic Acids and Volatile Phenols of Aged Wine

Abstract

The effect of two Oenococcus oeni strains, Viniflora^® CiNe™ and Viniflora^® CH11, with and without cinnamoyl esterase activity, respectively, on the contents of the hydroxycinnamic acids (HCAs) p-coumaric and ferulic acid, and their respective volatile phenols, 4-ethylphenol and 4-ethylguaiacol, was investigated over six months in Cabernet Sauvignon wines inoculated with two different Brettanomyces bruxellensis strains, CBS 73 and CBS 2499. Both CiNe™ and CH11 showed growth and malolactic fermentation in the wines. There were no clear growth interactions between B. bruxellensis and O. oeni. Furthermore, B. bruxellensis did not inhibit MLF by CiNe™ or CH11. The HCA concentrations in all wines increased until 114 days of fermentation, after which they decreased from day 114 to day 180. Wines inoculated with CiNe™ had the highest concentrations of HCAs throughout the fermentations. While CiNe™ degraded more of the tartaric ester bound forms of HCAs into free HCAs, there was no significant difference in the production of volatile phenols as compared with wines inoculated with CH11. However, there was a significant difference between wines with the two strains of B. bruxellensis in the level of volatile phenols and HCAs on day 180. Thus, the level of volatile phenols in wine depends more on strain differences of B. bruxellensis than on cinnamoyl esterase activity of O. oeni.