Using Melody Yeast

[Cap Puncher]

I am very interested in trying a new yeast in a couple weeks, "Melody" by CHR Hansen. I was going to try it with a higher end chardonnay. Anyone that has experience with it, please share. I like the fact it has T. delbrueckii, and L. thermotolerans, in addition to S. cerevisiae. I bought a 10g pack from the Beverage people. I have read that the L. thermotolerans produces lactic acid, which in large amounts can inhibit malolactic. I was planning on putting the chardonnay through malolactic. It says it facilitates ML. Has anyone co-inoculated malolactic with the Melody before? I was planning on using Enoferm Alpha co-inoculated with Melody. Any experience shared would be greatly appreciated.

 

[sour_grapes]

... lactic acid, which in large amounts can inhibit malolactic.

I would like to know more about that. Can you provide a link or citation for this?

 

[Cap Puncher]

I would like to know more about that. Can you provide a link or citation for this?

https://scottlab.com/content/files/Documents/Handbooks/WinemakingHandbook2020.pdf
It states it in the Scott Labs 2020 handbook under Laktia ( L. thermotolerans ) product. "It is important to note that lactic acid >3g/L can inhibit malolactic bacteria ".

Also, "Wines with levels above 5 g/L malic acid may start MLF, but may not go to completion. This may be due to inhibition of the bacteria by increasing concentrations of L-lactic acid derived from the MLF itself. " is stated in this article "Understanding Difficult Malolactic Fermentations". I haven't taken the time to dive into the primary literature.

 

[sour_grapes]

https://scottlab.com/content/files/Documents/Handbooks/WinemakingHandbook2020.pdf
It states it in the Scott Labs 2020 handbook under Laktia ( L. thermotolerans ) product. "It is important to note that lactic acid >3g/L can inhibit malolactic bacteria ".

Also, "Wines with levels above 5 g/L malic acid may start MLF, but may not go to completion. This may be due to inhibition of the bacteria by increasing concentrations of L-lactic acid derived from the MLF itself. " is stated in this article "Understanding Difficult Malolactic Fermentations". I haven't taken the time to dive into the primary literature.

Very interesting, thanks!

 

[Ignoble Grape]

I got this one.

So I know myself and about 5 other people who chose Melody for our enology course last semester with our Chardonnay winemaking kits (#COVID learning!), including the professor.

Every single one of us had trouble getting it started as well as trouble getting fermentation to finish - looking back at my ferm curve, it looks like it was around 6 days just to start seeing any kind of change, which was super nerve racking. I added yeast nutrient 3x. There was no intentional keeping fermentation cool to preserve aromatics - we were all putting it on top of heaters, setting it out in the sun, etc. etc. trying to finish things off.

One of the classmates named her wine 'Lazy Girl'. Lazy Girl never finished fermentation.

I can't speak to the flavor profile being anything extroadinary given the pain in the a$$ that I went through with ferm. Used juice concentrate from the Central Valley where it's 8000 degrees, so not the finest ingredients to start out with. Haven't bottled it yet.

Fun to play with if you'd like a challenge. That's about all I've got.

 

[Cap Puncher]

I got this one.

So I know myself and about 5 other people who chose Melody for our enology course last semester with our Chardonnay winemaking kits (#COVID learning!), including the professor.

Every single one of us had trouble getting it started as well as trouble getting fermentation to finish - looking back at my ferm curve, it looks like it was around 6 days just to start seeing any kind of change, which was super nerve racking. I added yeast nutrient 3x. There was no intentional keeping fermentation cool to preserve aromatics - we were all putting it on top of heaters, setting it out in the sun, etc. etc. trying to finish things off.

One of the classmates named her wine 'Lazy Girl'. Lazy Girl never finished fermentation.View attachment 73584

I can't speak to the flavor profile being anything extroadinary given the pain in the a$$ that I went through with ferm. Used juice concentrate from the Central Valley where it's 8000 degrees, so not the finest ingredients to start out with. Haven't bottled it yet.

Fun to play with if you'd like a challenge. That's about all I've got.

Thanks for your experience. I really appreciate your input. I guess I had some follow up questions:
1. Where did your class source the yeast?
2. How did you rehydrate the yeast? Water temp? I know there are particular instructions on rehydration water temps that are different than normal due to the non-cerevisiae yeasts.

 

[Ignoble Grape]

Thanks for your experience. I really appreciate your input. I guess I had some follow up questions:
1. Where did your class source the yeast?
2. How did you rehydrate the yeast? Water temp? I know there are particular instructions on rehydration water temps that are different than normal due to the non-cerevisiae yeasts.

1. Not 100% sure. I'm assuming that they got it from the manufacturer - we all got the yeast pre-measured in little ziplock bags, so it came from a much larger package (the college has a winery). We chose our preferred strains on a Thursday and picked it up on a Friday kind of thing. Certainly a variable.
2. Followed the rehydration instructions exactly as written in the specs.

 

[MiBor]

My neighbor fermented 3 buckets of Chilean Bello Chardonnay last year, each with a different yeast. He's attempting to replicate a $55/bottle wine that he really likes and trying different things to get him as close as possible to his goal at a reduced cost. He used Renaissance Allegro, Lalvin ICV D254 and CH Melody. He said that the Melody started late and never completed fermentation, so he got sick of waiting and restarted with K1V-1116, which completed the fermentation quickly. I got to taste all 3 wines and the one I liked the most was the one fermented with Allegro, than MLF-ed with VP41. The close second was the D254 wine.
You can buy any enological yeast you want from Gusmer, just be aware that you have to get the 500g brick because they don't sell small packets.

 

[CDrew]

@Ignoble Grape thanks for sharing that. Based on that alone, I'll stick with Renaissance yeasts for white wine fermentation-used Allegro with good success this past fall. I like fermentation to go quickly and clean as I feel that without professional equipment we home wine makers already have a disadvantage, so a slow starter would be nerve racking as you suggest.

 

[Cap Puncher]

My neighbor fermented 3 buckets of Chilean Bello Chardonnay last year, each with a different yeast. He's attempting to replicate a $55/bottle wine that he really likes and trying different things to get him as close as possible to his goal at a reduced cost. He used Renaissance Allegro, Lalvin ICV D254 and CH Melody. He said that the Melody started late and never completed fermentation, so he got sick of waiting and restarted with K1V-1116, which completed the fermentation quickly. I got to taste all 3 wines and the one I liked the most was the one fermented with Allegro, than MLF-ed with VP41. The close second was the D254 wine.

Alright, thanks for the feedback everyone. I think you might have talked me out of the Melody. I got a 10 g vial for $3ish so not a big deal. However, the good news is I have some Biodiva (T. delbrueckii same a Prelude but slightly different). I will follow it with some Allegro (honestly this was my original plan and have both on hand). I haven’t used either, so fingers crossed!

 

[Ignoble Grape]

Alright, thanks for the feedback everyone. I think you might have talked me out of the Melody. I got a 10 g vial for $3ish so not a big deal. However, the good news is I have some Biodiva (T. delbrueckii same a Prelude but slightly different). I will follow it with some Allegro (honestly this was my original plan and have both on hand). I haven’t used either, so fingers crossed!

Maybe it makes good sour dough???

 

[Cap Puncher]

Just in case anyone is interested, I reached out to the CHR Hansen rep with questions about Melody and this was their response:

Thank you for reaching out to Chr. Hansen regarding our Viniflora range of yeast and bacteria for winegrapes.
I’ll answer your questions in general terms then ask a few questions myself:

1. Yes, you can co-inoculation Melody with our range of O. oeni strains. Often, successful co-inoculations are a matter of application so results will depend on your wine chemistry and desired results. We always suggest waiting at least 24 hours when performing an Early Co-inoculation.

1. The species responsible for lactic acid production in the Melody blend is Lachancea thermotolerans. Vinilfora Melody is a blend of three yeast strains, Saccharomyces cerevisiae (60%), Torulaspora delbrueckii (20%) and Lachancea thermotolerans (20%). I often see about 0.5 grams of lactic acid produced when using Viniflora Concerto (100% Lachancea thermotolerans) with Saccharomyces cerevisiae. In my experience, the lactic acid produced does not inhibit MLF in the vast majority of wines.

 

[Cap Puncher]

So, just for an update, I went against what I originally stated and pinched the Melody yeast blend anyway. Patience is a virtue. I reconstituted per instructions on package. Pinched in 5.25 gallons of Russian River Valley Chardonnay. Brix 22.9, pH 3.44, TA=6.5 (after slight adjustment). There was a bit of foaming with a ring on the inside of the 6.5 gallon. After seeing the ring form I added a bit of Fermaid O. Temp was 64F. I waited and waited.... then at 36hrs it took off. It is fermenting beautifully in my cellar at 58 F. SG was 1.045 today (day 4). Wonderful smells of tropical fruits and apples. It was a long lag phase (maybe due to the wild ferment specialists T. delbrueckii /L. thermotolerans).