Western Australia Vintage Case Study

When wineries started reporting some cases of Botrytis across WA, Winequip were on hand with products from Lallemand & IOC. Learn more in the case study below.

La niña weather event

With the Bureau Of Meteorology predicting warmer summer temperatures and higher rainfall across most regions, winemaking products were going to be an important aspect of Vintage 2021. The La Niña weather event of the 2020/21 summer resulted in increased rainfall and unusual weather conditions across Western Australia. WA experienced bad weather patterns in February as harvest began, with significant rainfall and high humidity leading to increased risk of disease in some vineyards.

In order to combat the potential threat of disease in vineyards, the team at Winequip WA had to act quickly to provide wineries with solutions and strategies to overcome one of the most challenging vintages in the past 20 years.

What did we do?

In order to give customers the best advice, Winequip initially released two protocols that focused on winemaking products from Lallemand & IOC and strategies to manage Botrytis infection. These protocols were released prior to Vintage, giving winemakers the best opportunity to become familiar with the procedures before the bad weather hit.

Once the weather turned bad, Winequip representatives were able to react quickly to focus on key effective products against Botrytis rot and mould. Our experienced representatives were able to assist winemakers on site through delivering products quickly as well as informing them on best practices. Advice was given to winemakers on quick and effective juice handling/flotation to minimise effects of oxidation and spoilage, as well as effective strategies and products for fermentation.

tips given by the winequip team

Our experienced Winequip representatives were able to pass on the following tips and recommended winemaking products to wineries in Western Australia to help them manage any Botrytis infection.

Infected Juice Handling

• Minimise holding juice cold for prolonged periods.
• Achieve pectin stability, then increase bentonite addition to deactivate laccase.

Flotation – White & Rosé:

• Increase speed of processing and reduce susceptibility to oxidation and laccase activity.
• Reductive handling

Fermentation (White):

To prevent oxidation as well as protect aroma and flavour;

• Add Lallemand GLUTASTAR ™ during ferment to release the maximum allowable level of glutathione to prevent oxidation and provide aromatic freshness.
• Choice of Lallemand yeast for Robust, Safe & Reliable fermentation with short lag phase.
• Using Lallemand GO-FERM PROTECT EVOLUTION ™ as a rehydration nutrient to maximise yeast viability and vitality.
• Using FERMAID ®O or FERMAID ® AT as a yeast nutrient to ensure clean and successful completion of ferment.

Fermentation (Red):

For preventing oxidation and protecting colour, flavour and aroma;

• Add IOC Tannins at crusher to mitigate effects of laccase and oxidation.
• Choice of Lallemand yeast for Robust, Safe & Reliable fermentation with short lag phase.
• Addition of IOC fermentation tannins and Lallemand SYD for achieving colour stability as well as developing mouthfeel and structure.
• Use deodorising carbon to treat mouldy flavour and aroma characters.
• Add Lallemand GO-FERM PROTECT EVOLUTION ™ as a rehydration nutrient to maximise yeast viability and vitality.
• Use FERMAID ®O or FERMAID ®AT as a yeast nutrient to ensure clean and successful fermentation.
• Choose Lallemand robust wine bacteria for effective reduction of oxidation potential and also for providing fruit driven outcome.

targeted products for managing infections

The following IOC products are effective against Botrytis rot as well as mould infections:

Inofine V

insights from winemakers

“The help and advice from the Winequip team was instrumental in the quality of wine we managed to produce in vintage 2021. Having not faced vintage conditions as extreme as this in Margaret River before, I was not familiar with many of these products. IOC Infinity Green T additions at the press showed amazing results as did IOC Flavoclean additions to juice. The resulting wines were bright, had great colour and any mould or “off aromas” were removed. I will definitely be reaching for these products again should we be unfortunate enough to have another similar vintage. I recommend these products 110%!”

– Jodie Barton, Swings And Roundabouts.

The 2021 vintage created some unforeseen challenges as some extreme weather changes occurred in Margaret River at the time of harvest. As a contract facility we had clients concerned about the impact on quality. The Winequip team were available to provide rapid technical advice and solutions to provide quality outcomes with the wines produced. The IOC winemaking products Essential Antioxidant and Flavoclean proved to be excellent in controlling oxidation and combatting any off flavours and aromas. I would highly recommend their service, troubleshooting abilities and their products in both tough and easy harvest conditions. 

– Quentin Gobretgs, Margaret River Winemakers.

Over the course of a very challenging harvest, the advice and support that the Winequip team provided around the IOC range of products was instrumental to our successful outcomes. Operating within the confines of Organic certification adds additional layers of complexity during challenging seasons, however Winequip took the time to understand our operations and worked alongside us to ensure that our objectives were met. It’s reassuring to know that such valuable resources are close at hand and readily available in testing times.

– Travis Clydesdale, Blind Corner

contact us