Temporal Comparison of Microbial Community Structure in an Australian Winery

Cristian Varela,Anthony Borneman,Kathleen Cuijvers

doi:10.3390/fermentation7030134

Cristian Varela, Anthony Borneman + Show 1 more

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.3390/fermentation7030134

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Abstract

Most modern fermented foods and beverages are produced in fit-for-purpose facilities which are designed to ensure not only a reliable product, but also one safe for consumption. Despite careful hygiene, microorganisms can colonise these facilities and establish resident populations that can potentially contribute to the fermentation process. Although some microorganisms may not negatively affect the final product, spoilage microorganisms can be detrimental for quality, generating substantial economic losses. Here, amplicon-based phylotyping was used to map microbial communities within an Australian winery, before, during and after the 2020 vintage. Resident bacterial and yeast populations were shown to change over time, with both relative abundance and location within the winery varying according to sampling date. The bacterial family Micrococcaceae, and the genera Sphingomonas and Brevundimonas were the most abundant bacterial taxonomies, while Naganishia, Pyrenochaeta and Didymella were the most abundant fungal genera. Mapping the spatial distributions of the microbial populations identified the main locations that harboured these resident microorganisms, that include known wine spoilage yeasts and bacteria. Wine spoilage microorganisms, including the genefugura Lactobacillus, Acetobacter, Gluconobacter and Brettanomyces showed very low relative abundance and were found only in a couple of locations within the winery. Microbial populations detected in this facility were also compared to the resident microbiota identified in other fermented food facilities, revealing that microbial population structures may reflect the nature of the product created in each facility.

Highlights

Fermentation is one of the oldest practices for food preservation
The winery environment is no exception, grapes bring into the winery different bacterial and fungal populations, depending on variety, origin and harvesting practices [53,54], which will come in contact with winery surfaces, including crushers, pressers, floors, walls, fermentation vessels and barrels
In this work we studied the microbial populations found on one particular winery niche, the winery floor

Summary

Introduction

Fermentation is one of the oldest practices for food preservation. Archaeological evidence suggests that the oldest fermented beverage, which was made of grapes, hawthorn berries, honey, and rice, was produced between 7000 and 6650 BCE [1]. Approximately 5000 different fermented foods and beverages are estimated to be produced around the world [2]. Most modern fermented products are created in specially designed facilities and while these are devised to reduce the risk of spoilage, food facilities are not abiotic [5,6]. These facilities are susceptible to colonisation by microorganisms from various sources, including raw materials, air and humans [6]

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