Malo‐lactic fermentation occurred in 62% of 466 Australian dry red wines of 1968 vintage at 6 months of age. In a further 9 % of wines the fermentation was still in progress. Wines which had undergone the fermentation were less acid than those which had not. The difference was greater in wines made from Cabernet Sauvignon than from Shiraz or Grenache grapes.
The winery in which the wine was made strongly influenced the occurrence of malo‐lactic fermentation in a particular wine‐growing area, and was the most important factor involved.
Incidence of malo‐lactic fermentation was closely correlated with the presence of Leuconostoc and Coccus in the wine, but less so with Lactobacillus. Leuconostoc, Lactobacillus and sometimes Coccus occurred together, but no wines contained both Lactobacillus and Coccus.
Diacetyl content of the wines ranged from 0 to 7.5 ppm. In wines which had undergone malo‐lactic fermentation the mean diacetyl content was 2.8 ppm, compared with 1.3 ppm for wines which had not undergone this. Diacetyl content of wines made from Grenache was not significantly different, with respect to the occurrence or absence of malo‐lactic fermentation.
The statistical significances of the various inter‐relationships between malo‐lactic fermentation, type of bacteria present and certain wine constituents are assessed.
Estimates of variance components of II constituents of Australian dry red wines are given, and these may be used in designing future sampling surveys.
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