Starter cultures as biocontrol strategy to prevent Brettanomyces bruxellensis proliferation in wine

Brettanomyces bruxellensis is a common and significant wine spoilage microorganism. B.bruxellensis strains generally detain the molecular basis to produce compounds that are detrimental for the organoleptic quality of the wine, including some classes of volatile phenols thatderive from the sequential bioconversion of specific hydroxycinnamic acids such as ferulate and p-coumarate. Although B.bruxellensiscan be detected at any stage of the winemaking process, it is typically isolated at the end of the alcoholic fermentation (AF), before the staring of the spontaneous malolactic fermentation (MLF) or during barrel aging. For this reason, the endemic diffusion ofB.bruxellensisleads to consistenteconomic losses in the wine industry. Considering the interest in reducing sulphur dioxide use during wine-making, in recent years, biological alternatives, such as the use of tailored selected yeast and bacterial strains inoculated to promote AF and MLF, are actively sought as biocontrol agents to avoid the 'Bretta' character in wines. Here we review the importance of dedicated characterization and selection of starter cultures for AF and MLF in wine, in order to reduce or prevent both growth of B. bruxellensis and its production of volatile phenols in the matrix.