Quality of Yeast, is very important?

[sbnmiky]

We all know that yeast combine suger and oxigen, and makes Alcohol.

So why there are around so many different kind of yeasts? Apart the one that can resist to higher alcohol....is that important for flavour?

 

[Tom_S]

Yes, it is. Yeast is a living, single-celled organism, and like all single-celled organisms there are many different strains with many different properties. It's like how there are so many different people in the world with different abilities. Different strains of yeast have different characteristics which make them suited for different types of wines. You wouldn't want to use bread yeast for wine. While it would make wine, it makes bad tasting wine.

The strains for wine making were cultured throughout history after discovering which ones make better wines. Of course, hundreds of years ago nobody really knew about microscopic organisms, but they did know that if they took the lees from a batch of wine and spread them around their grapevines, they'd get the same good wine next year.