“Inhibition of malolactic fermentation by Saccharomyces during alcoholic fermentation under low- and high-nitrogen conditions: a study in synthetic media”

• Malolactic fermentation (MLF), performed by the bacteria Oenococcus oeni, can become sluggish due to the presence of several factors: 1) low pH, 2) high ethanol, 3) inadequate temperature, 4) inadequate nutrients and/or, 5) competition from the wine yeast Saccharomyces. Originally, researchers believed that the mechanism behind Saccharomyces interference with Oenococcus was the removal by the faster-growing yeast of nutrients important for the bacteria. But, according to this study, this may not be the case, and a more acceptable explanation is that the yeast produce metabolites toxic to the bacteria.