Analysis of lactic acid bacteria populations during spontaneous malolactic fermentation of Tempranillo wines at five wineries during two consecutive vintages

The ecology and the population dynamics of lactic acid bacteria during malolactic fermentation of Tempranillo wine made at five wineries in Castilla-La Mancha were analysed for two consecutive vintages (years 2006 and 2007). This microbiota was typed using Randomly Amplified Polymorphic DNA-Polymerase Chain Reaction (RAPD-PCR) subsequently identified using both molecular and phenotypic methods. Oenococcus oeni was the predominant species. Genotypes varied considerably in both of the vintages from each winery, although a number of coincident genotypes were found in each one. Three genotypes were present in all the wineries in at least one of the vintages. These results confirm the existence of a coincident population of O. oeni genotypes that may be considered endemic to this wine region and that seem to play an important role in all the vinifications.