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WSIt may look alarming, but flor can sometimes be a feature rather than a fault 🦠 ✨ ✅
Flor is a thin film of yeast that can develop on the surface of wine during ageing. This layer protects the wine from excessive oxidation while the yeasts slowly metabolise compounds in the wine, influencing aroma, flavour and texture. This process is known as biological ageing.
Two regions are particularly famous for wines aged under flor. In Jerez, Spain, styles such as Fino and Manzanilla develop entirely under flor, while Amontillado begins its life this way before later ageing oxidatively. In France’s Jura, Vin Jaune develops beneath a similar veil of yeast known as le voile.
Although these regions are the best known, there is growing interest in biological ageing elsewhere. As winemakers experiment with traditional vessels such as amphorae and qvevri, flor (or flor-like yeast films) can sometimes develop naturally, creating distinctive and complex wines.
Here, a natural flor has formed on Goruli Mtsvane (a Georgian grape) ageing in qvevri from @gabriels_wine
Credit: @gabriels_wine
#flor #qvevri #wineeducation #wset #sousvoile
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