Add yeast or go wild ?

[canvasback]

Just crushed 150lbs of malbec grapes from chile . First time always made wine from the juice and added yeast . Borrowed crusher from my friend old school italian , he says not to add anything. Been trying to read up on it but getting more on the add yeast option . Still not sure which way to go . Any opinions or suggestions would greatly be appreciated . Thanks

 

[gregbathurst]

Wild yeast fermentation was the only way for thousands of years, it is only since the 1950s that cultured yeast became popular. Many winemakers still go with wild yeast, it's mainly a matter of how patient you are. Wild (natural) fermentation advocates say they get a more complex flavour, the advantage of cultured yeast is convenience and reliability. The only thing I add to my wine (shiraz and cab sav) is yeast and MLF culture, I just like the convenience.

 

[bernardsmith]

Why not divide the batch and allow one part to be fermented with wild yeast and the other batch to be fermented with a cultured yeast. If you are risk tolerant you might divide your batch into three (not necessarily 3 equal volumes ) and pitch a cultured yeast, allow one batch to ferment itself (wild yeasts) and back slop from a previous wine for the third batch... :rockin:

 

[DoctorCAD]

If you live in an area where the "natural" yeasts are overrun with the correct wine yeasts, you will be fine. However, what if the natural yeasts in your area make your wine taste like crap? Is it worth it for a $1.00 pack of yeast?

JMO

 

[canvasback]

I added the yeast thanks for the input guys I appreciate it .

 

[BisonHeadBrewery]

Malbec is one of my favorite grape wines from the Mendoza valley of Argentina and I think the main thing that makes them special is the indigenous yeast and natural fermentation. Your Chilean grapes might have had a similar yeast strain with the skins and it would have been interesting to see how it turned out. On the other hand, your local yeast may have imparted a weird flavor. Using standardized yeast strains give more predictable results but they may not be optimized for the Malbec grape.

Let us know how it turns out.

 

[Barley-and-Hops]

Not inoculating is like playing russian roulette with your wine. You will have better reliability, consistency and less stuck fermentation with the tried and true strains.