UC Davis

Solaris is a new disease tolerant cultivar increasingly cultivated in cool climate regions. In order to explore the winemaking processes' potential to make different styles of Solaris wines, the effects of different pre-fermentation treatments (direct press after crushing, whole cluster press, cold maceration, and skin fermentation) on the volatile profile, chemical, and sensory properties of Solaris wines were investigated. Cold maceration treatment for 24 h and fermentation on skin led to wines with lower acidity and higher glycerol and total polyphenol indexes. Sensory analysis showed that cold maceration enhanced "apricot" and "apple" flavor while skin fermentation gave rise to increased "rose" and "elderflower" flavor. The PLS regression model revealed that fruity flavor of cold macerated wines was related to a combination of esters while β-damascenone and linalool were correlated to the "rose" and "elderflower" flavor. This study provides information about pre-fermentation techniques that allowed the possibility of obtaining wines with different styles.