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Yeast Nutrition Best Practices for a Healthy Fermentation

A smooth, complete fermentation doesn’t happen by chance, it starts with balanced yeast nutrition. When yeast has access to the right nutrients at the right time, you avoid sluggish or stuck fermentations, reduce the risk of H₂S and VA, and unlock the full aromatic potential of your grapes. 

Why Yeast Nutrition Matters?

  • Nitrogen is the main driver of yeast growth and fermentation activity. Saccharomyces can assimilate only ammonium ions (DAP), amino acids (organic nitrogen), and small peptides (organic nitrogen).
  • Amino acids are strategic: they are taken up early, stored, and used gradually. Some of them also act as aroma precursors (thiols, esters, acetates).
  • Vitamins & minerals (thiamine, Mg, Zn) act as cofactors in enzymatic reactions and have a role in cell growth, fermentation activity, and nitrogen metabolism.
  • Sterols & long-chain fatty acids are essential for membrane structure, stress resistance, and survival.

Click here for all fermentation tips & guides

Keys to Successful Fermentation:

1. Start Strong: Boost Yeast Health from Day One with Oenostim 

OENOSTIM® provides sterols, ergosterols, vitamins, and minerals that strengthen yeast membranes, improve alcohol tolerance, and support complete, efficient fermentation. By promoting a shorter lag phase and healthy yeast activity, it reduces contamination risks and ensures a smooth fermentation from day one.

2. Fuel Fermentation: The Power of Organic Nitrogen 

OPTIFLORE® O is a 100% organic nutrient (organic nitrogen is 2–4 times more effective than DAP). Derived from inactivated yeasts, it is rich in easily assimilable amino acids, vitamins, minerals, and micronutrients favoring cell multiplication. OPTIFLORE O supports regular and complete alcoholic fermentation, helps limit heat spikes, and is utilized by yeasts as needed. The use of OPTIFLORE O results in wines with enhanced aromatic profiles and reduced levels of undesirable compounds such as volatile acidity (VA) and hydrogen sulfide (H₂S). 

3. Overcome Low YAN: OPTIFERM for Extreme Deficiencies 

In severe nitrogen deficiencies, pure organic nitrogen may not suffice to elevate YAN to adequate levels for proper fermentation. OPTIFERM® is recommended in such cases, as it is a complex nutrient comprising inactivated yeast, amino acids, sterols, long-chain unsaturated fatty acids, and inorganic ammonium salts (DAP). 

4. Rescue & Protect: Late-Stage Nutrition and Detox 

ACTIBIOL® supports yeast health in sluggish or stuck fermentations by providing growth (vitamins, amino acids, peptides) and survival factors (sterols, fatty acids). Its yeast hulls bind inhibitory compounds, detoxifying the must and ensuring fermentation completion. Ideal for restarting or rescuing challenging ferments. 

Special Tips for Challenging Fermentations:

  • Low YAN (<100 mg/L): Use a mix of organic + inorganic nitrogen (OptiFerm); pure organic may be insufficient.
  • High YAN (>250 mg/L): Monitor excessive biomass; add Optiflore O at ⅓ fermentation to support yeast.
  • Damaged fruit (Botrytis, mildew…): Early supplementation with higher doses of OenoStim and Optiflore O compensates for amino acid and vitamin deficiencies.
  • Clarified juice (low turbidity): Add sterols and fatty acids via OenoStim to replace losses.
  • Sluggish fermentation: Detoxify with Actibiol before restarting.
  • Boost aromas: Use specialty nutrients like OPTITHIOLS (thiol precursors + antioxidant protection) or OPTIESTERS (ester precursors for fruity/floral notes).

Find all our technical resources online including winemaking guidelines, webinars, and more HERE.

We have equipment in stock, please contact your sales rep for pricing, or demo. We also sell certified BV used equipment, view HERE.

Shop everything you need in winemaking products, laboratory equipment, and spare parts on our website HERE.

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Bio Acidification in Winemaking: Boost Freshness Naturally

In this session, we present two innovative yeast strains that help naturally restore balance, reduce the need for SO₂, and meet consumer demand for fresher, lower-alcohol wines.

Smart Fermentation Tools for Modern Challenges: Acidification with Non-Conventional Yeasts

Event Type: Webinar

Event Date: 07/31/2025

Location: Online

With hotter growing seasons and shifting harvest windows, winemakers are increasingly challenged by high pH, low acidity, and elevated alcohol in their musts. These changes can lead to wines that feel flat, overly ripe, and microbiologically unstable, often requiring higher SO₂ doses and risking aroma loss and reduced freshness. 

In this webinar, we’ll explore two innovative yeast tools designed to naturally correct these imbalances from the fermentation stage:      

  • Excellence X-Fresh (Lachancea thermotolerans): a bio-acidifying yeast that converts sugars into lactic acid, helping to lower pH, increase total acidity, and reduce alcohol in must—while boosting microbial stability.
  • Excellence Celsius (Saccharomyces cerevisiae): a fermentation yeast that produces elevated levels of glycerol and malic acid, enhancing mouthfeel, freshness, and aroma intensity. 

Together, these strains support a balanced, sustainable winemaking strategy in the face of climate change—and respond to consumer demand for fresher, lower-alcohol wines with vibrant acidity. 

Register here.

webinar yeast winemaking

Optimize Aromas – Your Harvest Toolbox Is Here

Unlock the Full Aromatic Potential of Your Wines

Aromatics are at the heart of a wine’s identity, whether you are aiming for fresh, fruity whites, complex, expressive rosés or a fruit-driven red wines. At each stage of the winemaking process, you have the opportunity to shape and elevate your wine’s aromatic profile. Our targeted range of products offers you a complete toolbox to guide and enhance expression, from grape to bottle. 

1) Enhance Precursors – Set the Stage for Aroma Development

OptiEsters

OptiEster® boosts the formation of fruity and floral fermentative esters by providing key precursors for higher alcohol acetates and fatty acid ethyl esters.

Dosage: 20–40 g/hL
Use: Early fermentation – Enhances fruitiness, lifts aromatics, refreshes overripe grapes, and helps mask smoke taint and vegetal notes.

OptiThiols

OptiThiols® is a formulation of inactivated yeasts rich in reducing compounds that protects against oxidation and promotes the release of aromatic thiols, enhancing citrus and tropical fruit character.

Dosage: 20–40 g/hL
Use: Early fermentation – thiol booster and antioxidant protection.

2) Reveal Aromatic Potential – Unlock the Varietal Signature

Oenozym Thiols

Œnozym® Thiols is an enzyme specifically designed to enhance the release of thiol precursors in white, rose and red wines.

By boosting thiol revelation (4MMP, 3MH, A-3MH), Œnozym® Thiols helps amplify aromatic intensity and improve aroma longevity. It can also be used just before bottling to help protect these aromas against oxidation.

Dosage: 4–6 mL/hL
Use: During fermentation or pre-bottling for thiol enhancement and aroma protection.

Oenozym Fruity White

Œnozym® Fruity White is a pectolytic enzyme with strong glycosidase activity that releases aromatic compounds like terpenes and C13-norisoprenoids from their glycosylated precursors, enhancing the fruity, floral, rose-like, spicy profile of white, rosé and red wines.

Dosage: 3–6 g/hL
Use: During or after fermentation to boost varietal aromas in Viognier, Gewürztraminer Pinot gris, Riesling, Muscat, Syrah, …

3) Protect Aroma – Lock in What You’ve Built

Aroma Protect

Aroma Protect® is very rich in glutathione and other reducing compounds, providing immediate antioxidant protection in wine and lees. By significantly slowing oxidation, it helps preserve the wine’s aromas and freshness.

Dosage: 15–30 g/hL
Use: At the end of fermentation or during aging. Effective alternative or complement to SO₂ for antioxidant protection.

Explore Our Fermentation Booklet Here.

Find all our technical resources online including winemaking guidelines, webinars, and more HERE. 

WINEMAKING WEBINAR: Bioprotection & Oxygen Control for Lowering SO2 with Confidence

Event Type: Webinar

Event Date: 06/26/2025

Location: https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/5117476806141/WN_0NMF5P8gQqG55f3Y2aNOdw

Growing public concern about sulfite content and the potential for quality loss from high SO2 additions, coupled with the variable grape parameters influenced by each vintage, underscores a clear need for new winemaking tools. Join us for this webinar to explore effective strategies for reducing or eliminating SO2 in winemaking.

 Leveraging Lamothe Abiet's expertise, you'll gain insights on achieving microbial, oxygen, and color stability, as well as aromatic freshness. Discover modern tools, including non-Saccharomyces yeasts (e.g., for bioprotection), fining agents, and tailored fermentation strategies, to help you craft expressive, commercially viable low/no-SO₂ wines. 

What you'll gain from this webinar: 

- The Power of Bioprotection: Learn how Metschnikowia pulcherrima can replace traditional SO2 at the crusher, during cold soak, or maceration, safeguarding your must and promoting healthier fermentations.

 - Oxygen Control: Protect wines from oxidation, preserve aromatics, and stabilize color in a low SO2 environment. 

- Enhanced Wine Quality: See how these integrated strategies contribute to more vibrant colors, greater aromatic depth, and improved overall complexity and stability in your finished wines. 

- Practical Applications: Get actionable insights and real-world examples to seamlessly integrate these advanced techniques into your winery operations. 

Join us Thursday, June 26th, for this webinar!

VIEW OUR WEBINAR: From Grape to Ageing – Optimize Your Wine's Aromas This Harvest

From Grape to Ageing – Optimize Your Wine's Aromas This Harvest

Is Your Winery Lab Ready for Harvest 2025? Watch our Webinar on Essential Lab Tools for Wineries

View Our WEBINAR on the Essential Lab Tools for Wineries

Used Bucher Vaslin – Vistalys R1 Optical Sorting Table – WIN Marketplace

Used Bucher Vaslin – Vistalys R1 Optical Sorting Table – WIN Marketplace

We are offering a used Vistalys R1 optical sorting machine, capable of processing up to 5 tons of fruit per hour. This advanced system utilizes 100 high-speed ejection nozzles and captures images at an impressive 1,000 frames per second, enabling precise, berry-by-berry sorting.

The Vistalys R1 is highly adaptable and suitable for a wide range of fruits. It can sort based on berry size, shape, and color, allowing for exceptional accuracy and consistency in quality control.

This unit has been serviced annually and remains in excellent working condition, ready for immediate use in your processing line.

For pricing, additional details, or to schedule a viewing, please contact: Sarah Donley - sarah.donley@buchervaslin.com

Webinar: Topic Unlocking the Secrets of Enzymes in Wine

Event Type: Webinar

Event Date: 04/15/2025

Location: https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_ACKCZH3HSJe79Ivm5WGGtA

Enzymes play a crucial role in winemaking, yet their potential is often underutilized. In this exclusive webinar, we’ll demystify the enzymes naturally found in grapes and their actions throughout the winemaking process. You’ll discover how enzymes can elevate wine quality, improve efficiency, and help you save time and costs in the cellar. 

Join us to explore the diverse range of enzymes used in oenology, including Lamothe Abiet’s innovative products. Learn how these enzymes improve extraction, enhance aroma profiles, promote clarification, and optimize your winemaking processes from start to finish. Don’t miss out on the opportunity to enhance your winemaking knowledge and techniques!

Winemaking Equipment Webinar: Maximizing Efficiency with Delta Oscillys

Event Type: Webinar

Event Date: 03/18/2025

Location: https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_ZYcm3gftSnqVAl3BF6ZNWg

Join us for an exclusive webinar where we dive into the key features and benefits of the Delta Oscillys Destemmer. In this session, Pascal Noilet, our Product Manager for Delta Oscillys, will share valuable insights into optimizing your operations with this upgraded destemmer. 

Whether you're looking to enhance quality, improve throughput, or streamline your processes, this webinar is a must-attend for anyone wanting to maximize the potential of their destemming system. Don't miss this opportunity to learn directly from our expert and get your questions answered.

webinar winemaking winemakers

About


Bucher Vaslin North America offers a complete range of services to fullfilled winemakers need and Bucher Vaslin North America offers a complete range of winemaking services, from reception to bottling. We offer innovative, fully integrated and cost-effective solutions for any winery. 

- BUCHER VASLIN reception equipment: From preparation and sorting, destemmers and crushers, and hoppers and elevators 

- LAMOTHE-ABIET offering premium winemaking enological solutions

- CAZAUX LOB Wine Pumps 

- COSTRAL bottling and labelling lines

- DUJARDIN-SALLERON high quality lab equipment 

- BUCHER Unipektin: Highly reputable wine production equipment expectations. We work hand-in-hand with winemakers to develop innovative, fully integrated and attractive solutions for any winery. 

Use our technological know-how and trained network of field contacts to quickly implement efficient and economical winery solutionsEvery piece of winery equipment from Bucher Vaslin is designed with your winery size and production in mind. Each piece can standalone or work fluidly together, for a full, turn-key winery solution.

Ask us for a timely quote and setup options. Our sales associates can match you with the best equipment and layout options for your winery's size and output.

 

 

Contact

Contact List

Title Name Email Phone Extension
General Manager Jean-Pierre Giovanni jean-pierre.giovanni@buchervaslin.com
Winemaking Solutions Manager Lora Goulevant lora.goulevant@buchervaslin.com 707-547-3694
Sales Manager Sarah Donley sarah.donley@buchervaslin.com 707-547-3663
Marketing Manager Ray DeLeon ray.deleon@buchervaslin.com 707-547-3695

Location List

Locations Address State Country Zip Code
Bucher Vaslin North America 3100 Dutton Ave, Ste. #146, Santa Rosa CA United States of America 95407

List of Locations