Using Chitosan at Crush to Control Microbial Spoilage
Joy Ting
March 2020
Chitosan has been used at nearly every stage of winemaking.
At crush, chitosan can be used to reduce the population of spoilage microbes. This can be used in addition to SO2 in difficult vintages and in lieu of SO2 in less difficult vintages.
In 2019, two WRE experiments explored the use of chitosan to control volatile acidity and microbial growth at crush. The results were presented as a video recording due to restrictions on in-person gatherings during the COVID-19 pandemic.