Journal of Scientific & Industrial Research Vol. 64, January 2005, pp 9-18 Panorma of research and development of wines in India V K Joshi* and Devender Attri Department of Postharvest Technology, Dr Y S Parmar University of Horticulture & Forestry, Nauni-Solan 173 230 In India, an impressive progress has been made in development of technologies for preparation of wines from grapes, mango, apple, peach, pear, plum, cashew-apple, pineapple, pomegranate, banana, ber, strawberry, and kinnow. Screening of cultivars of grapes, peach, plum, mango, apple, wild and cultivated apricot, litchi, sand pear and strawberry has also been made for wine preparation. Methods for the cider and wine including those with medicinal properties preparation from apple juice and its concentrate have been standardized keeping, in view the characteristics of local produce and taste. Techniques based on debittering of juice by adsorption on XAD-16 and thermovinification of kinnow and strawberry wines have been developed. Technology for vermouth has been developed from plum, apple and sand pear fruits. Deacidifying yeast (Schizosaccharomyces pombe ) for making dry wine of acceptable quality and production of sparkling wines from plum, using immobilized S. pombe and foam stabilization by the use of yeast extract has successfully been made. An overview of the wine research, however, reflects that sporadic and inconsistent work is being carried out at different places in India and there are still a large number of research gaps. Consequently, the Indian wine industry is still in infancy and has to imbibe many developments made world over in the wine production. Keywords : Wine, Cider, Vermouth, Sparkliing wine, Dessert wine, Thermovinification, Fruit wine, Indian wine industry, Maturation, Deacidification IPC Code : C 12 G 1/100 Introduction Rigveda amply testify that the wine is perhaps the oldest fermented product known to man. However, still the actual birth place of wine is unknown though it had been prepared somewhere in 3500 B C. Wine refers to the fermented by-products of grapes ( Vitis vinifera ), but may include any undistilled alcoholic fermented fruit product. Compared to the grapes, amount of wine production from other fruits is very small. In India, wine industry is in infancy. Consequently, R&D, which has flourished world over, has resulted in the post harvest losses of preciously earned crops and encouraged alcoholism and associated vices. This study reviews briefly the present status of R&D and future strategies in wine research in India. Institutes on Wine Research In India, enological research is concentrated in a few institutions and universities: Indian Agricultural Research Institute, New Delhi; Indian Institute of Horticultural Research, Bangalore; Central Food Technological Research Institute, Mysore; Punjab Agricultural University, Ludhiana; Haryana Agricultural University, Hisar; Mahatama Phule Agricultural University, Rahori; Fruit and Vegetable Preservation Institute, Lucknow; Department of Postharvest Technology, Dr YS Parmar University of Horticulture and Forestry, Nauni Solan; Regional Reasearch Laboratory, Jammu; Department of Horticulture, Naubahar, H P Krishi Vishavavidyala, Palampur, H P and Himalayan Bioresource Technology, Palampur. Research Work on Wines Type of Wines Most of the wines made from the grapes are still sweet or dry, may be white, rose or red wines (8-14 % alcohol). Dessert wines (>14 alcohol) are prepared by fortification with wine spirit or alcohol. Special wines called vermouths (15-20 % alcohol) are produced by fortification with herbs or spice mixtures and these may be white or red and sweet or dry. Sparkling wine (10-12 % alcohol, excess of CO 2), giving an effervescence like a carbonated beverage. Alcoholic beverages with characteristic flavour of the particular fruit like apple, pear, plum, apricot, cherry, and mango are broadly termed as fruit wines. Aromatized and fortified wines have been 10 J SCI IND RES VOL 64 JANUARY 2005 prepared from plum, sand pear, and apple. Screening of Suitable Variety Thompson seedless and Mendeline anguine were suitable for the production of white wines, and Beauty seedless and Rubired for red wines preparation in Delhi 1. Beauty seedless and Carignane produced acceptable quality of red wines 2,3 , while Early Muscat, Champion and Perlette were found suitable for white wine production in Haryana 2,4 . Possibility of using Bangalore Blue, Bangalore Purple and Beauty Seedless for quality red wine production and Anab-e-Shahi and Selection-7 for the production of low alcoholic beverages 5,6 has also been explored. Screening of exotic grape varieties for wine making revealed that Chenin Blanc and Bayan Sherei for white wine, Black Cornichon and Feteasca Niagra for red wine, and Convent Large Black and Black Champa for dessert wines are suitable 7,8 . Arkavati variety for good quality dry white table wine, Arka Shyam for dry red table and Arka Shyam and Arka Kanchan for dessert wine are found suitable 9. Peach cultivars namely Redhaven, Sunhaven, J H Hale, Flavorcrest and July Elberta are adjudged better than others 10 for preparation of table wine. A wine with acceptable organoleptic properties could be prepared from custard apple ( Anona squamosa )11 . Among the different varieties of mango screened 12 , Fazli, Langra, and Chausa produced good quality wines, whereas Dashehari wine has a characteristic fruity flavour. Under Indian conditions, there is need to evaluate grape varieties which have been established to be suitable for red and white wine preparation and are cultivated extensively in wine producing countries. Considering the large number of fruit varieties cultivated in India, the work on wine from fruits is like a drop in the ocean. Harvest Maturity In some grape varieties, harvesting at post-mature stage for production of quality wines has been suggested. Wines made from hot season crops are rated better than those from cold season and distinct variations in changes in carbohydrates, nitrogenous compounds, organic and inorganic constituents in Bangalore Blue, Black Champa, Malvasia Bianca and Thompson Seedless are recorded due to maturity and season 13 . Brix/acid ratio (30±5 o) is found near optimum for making good quality dry wines. Grapes harvested at early or mid-mature stage are found to produce good quality wines from Thompson seedless, Arkavati, Arka shyam and Arka kanchan 14 . The dependence of wine quality on grape maturity is specific in different varieties. Amino acid is estimated in largest amounts, both in grapes and wines 15 . Microbiology of Fermentation For wine making, among yeast strains of Saccharomyces cerevisiae, strain no 127 and 383 were found superior based on total esters content, aldehyde production and rate of sugar utilized during fermentation 16 . The effect of 13 different yeast strains on quality of white table wines from Perlette grapes has also been investigated 4 . Based on the production of alcohol, aldehyde and fermentation rate, S. cerevisiae var ellipsoideus strain 10 from France is the most satisfactory yeast producing wine with flowery and fruity flavour. The grape variety and fermentation temperature are major factors affecting hydrogen sulphide production in wine17 . Yeasts are widely distributed in nature and grapes also carry some yeasts as natural flora called as wild yeasts belonging to genera Hansenula, Kloeckera, Pichia and Torulopsis . These microflora multiply during early stages of fermentation and produce special flavours but are inhibited later when the alcohol level reaches 4 to 6 per cent or more. Saccharomyces is found to be the most predominant yeasts during wine fermentation from Haryana grapes 18 . In addition, Debaryomyces vini , Candida pulcherrima , C. guilliermondi and Endomycopsis spp. are also found, but Kloeckera apiculata and Sacch. oviformis are not present. Six genera of yeasts from juice, fermenting juice and wines made from Bangalore Blue and Black Champa at Bangalore 19 are recorded. K. apiculata and Torulopsis spp. are the predominant yeasts during initial stages of fermentation. Torulopsis spp, S. chevalieri and S. cerevisiae have been isolated from wine. Kloeckera, Candida, Rhodotorula, Schizosaccharomyces and Saccharomyces from fermenting musts and wines of Beauty Seedless and Perlette grapes in Haryana 20 are isolated. C. guilliermondii , with high resistance to actidione, has been isolated from Bangalore Blue wines. Under studies on the effect of fungitoxicants on grape must fermentation and wine yeast growth 21 , only Difolatan as a spray affected the fermentation rate in Beauty seedless grapes. Fermented alcoholic beverages prepared in tribal areas reveal high quantity of methanol, and wide variations JOSHI & ATTRI: PANORMA OF RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT OF WINES IN INDIA 11 in ethanol, pH and volatile acidity among the products 22 . Such beverages contain Aspergillus flavus, A. oryzae, Mucor spp, Rhizopus spp, and bacteria like, Pediococcus, Leuconostoc and Pseudomonas. S. cerevisiae have been found predominantly among the natural sources of fermentation. The studies are needed to determine the natural flora of fruits, beverages, and their significance. Technology of Wine Production The high acidic grapes make the wine unpalatable. De-acidification studies of high acid must of grapes (8 varieties) indicate that all the musts fermented with Schizosaccharomyces pombe (a malic acid metabolising yeast) shows a considerable reduction in acidity 23 . Over de-acidification, encountered