Flocculent phenotypes in wine yeasts

The floc-forming ability of highly flocculent wine yeasts isolated from musts and wines was tested for susceptibility to heat and proteinase treatments. Four phenotypes were discriminated by treatments with pronase, proteinase K, trypsin and chymotrypsin. The most common phenotype was irreversibly lost only upon treatment with pronase, whereas the floc-forming ability was resistant to the action of proteinase K, trypsin and chymotrypsin. Another flocculent phenotype, represented by only one strain 6789, was resistant to the action of all proteolytic enzymes. The effect of high temperature on floc-forming ability in the presence or absence of Ca²⁺ions resulted in all the possible combinations and did not aid further general discrimination of flocculent phenotypes in Saccharomyces cerevisiae strains from wine.