TARTRATE STABILIZATION
OF WINE
BY ELECTRODIALYSIS
We are pleased to introduce a new method for the
tartrate stabilization of wines. The electrodialysis (ED) process
has been jointly developed by INRA, the French National
Agronomic Research Institute, and Eurodia Industrie. Recent advances
in ion exchange membrane technology have allowed the commercialization of
this innovative process. ED has been recognized by the International Wine
Office (OIV) as “good practice” and has been approved for commercial use by
the European Union for all types of wines, including AOC wines, as well as
in the USA and other countries. At the end of 2003, Eurodia has supplied over 40
plants that are successfully operated by wineries in France, Italy, Spain
Australia and USA processing a total volume of 3 million hl/year. Many
other wineries in many regions are considering this valuable technique
worldwide.
Advantages of
the Electrodialysis Wine Stabilization Process
· Rapid: ED is a one-pass, in-line process that
may be performed in conjunction with bottling. The process does not require immobilization of large quantities of
wine. It is performed by automatic units requiring little manpower to
operate.
· Efficient:
Energy costs are one fifth to one sixth of those required for
refrigeration. No filtration additives or seeding materials are required.
· Accurate: The analyzer determines the treatment specific to the level of
tartrates in the wine to be stabilized. The process is specific to
tartrates and does not remove other molecules that precipitate during cold
stabilization.
·
Reliable: ED stabilizes
both for potassium and calcium tartrates. The treated wine is always completely
stable.
·
Non-detrimental to the sensory qualities of the
wine: There are no temperature changes or additives. The process does not
significantly alter the wine characteristics and has no negative effect
on the taste, bouquet, and color of the wine.
·
Frugal: No wine is lost
during the process.
·
Compact: The ED is small, quiet, as well as
non-intrusive to other winery operations and can be installed on mobile
units to provide service from vineyard to vineyar
The traditional methods for tartrate stabilization
involve refrigeration or the use of chemical additives. These are:
- Time consuming: Cold
Stabilization can require several days.
- Expensive: The
energy requires to chill wine is costly.
- Unpredictable: Cold
Stabilization precipitates may contain material other than tartrates.
- Unreliable: Cold
Stabilization does not always guarantee wine stability
- Potentially detrimental to the sensory
qualities of the wine.
Costs Savings
Tartrate stabilization by ED provides significant energy cost savings
over the conventional refrigeration processes. No wine is lost and only
tatrates are removed. Wastes are reduced, as one membrane cleaning per
cycle (12 hours) is required, and only 5 to 15 liters of water are
consumed for each 100 liters of wine stabilized. With ED, it is possible
to reduce the cost of stabilization by as much as 30 to 40 % below that of
cold stabilization, depending on the size of the unit and the degree of
utilization. An estimate of the total operating cost for an ED unit with a throughput
of 90 hl/hour is approximately 1¢ per bottle. It is also possible to offer on-site treatment services with
mobile units.
|
|
Dependable
Operation
Average production rates for tartrate stabilization by ED are
roughly 100 l/h/m2 of effective cell area. Improved membrane
life has been achieved by the development of new fouling-resistant
membranes and through an automated program of periodical rinsing and
cleaning. Commercial experience with wines from a variety of regions has
shown that stability is usually achieved by a conductivity reduction
between 5 and 25 %. Practically, the guarantees are based on an average
reduction of 20 % at 20ºC. History and repeated trials have shown that
wines that were stabilized by ED remain stable. More importantly,
comparative sensory analyses of wines treated by ED and cold
stabilization showed no significant differences. In some cases, the wines
stabilized by ED showed noticeable quality improvements.
|
|
