Winery Applications of High Power Ultrasonic Technology for Brettanomyces Control, Barrel Life Extension, Fermentation Management, Flavour Enhancement and Sustainability

High intensity energy produced by high power ultrasound (HPU) has been successfully applied to many processes in food production to reduce operational costs and improve product quality with large-scale commercial applications, although its application to winemaking is still at an experimental stage. The impetus for extensive research and field trials on the use of HPU for wine barrel sanitation and colour, flavour and phenolics extraction from red grape musts began in the late 2000s, following pioneering work by the present writers in 2003 on the destruction of the insidious wine spoilage yeast, Brettanomyces, by HPU. Studies in the past 20 years have helped improve our knowledge and understanding of the effects of HPU on grapes, musts, wine, and winery microorganisms. Research has focused on the growth and death of wine yeasts, malolactic bacteria, and spoilage microorganisms, in particular, Brettanomyces; barrel sanitation and extension of the useful lives of barrels; pre-fermentation, fermentation and post-fermentation management; colour, flavour and phenolics enhancements and winery sustainability. The advantages and limitations of HPU for use in various winemaking processes are discussed. HPU has generated ground-breaking changes to barrel sanitation, thus solving the perennial problems of red wine and barrel spoilage by Brettanomyces bruxellensis, which cost individual wineries thousands to millions of dollars annually. As a disruptive industry changer, HPU technology offers an enormous range of possibilities to improve the wine industry’s competitive position through lower cost, higher quality, and the delivery of cleaner, fresher, and more appealing wines to the customer. It will enable wineries to create more sustainable, transformative, and innovative solutions to enhance winemaking processes.