Yes, bacteria do have a role in wine production: in many (most?) wines
a malolactic fermentation is part of the process that gives wine some
of its taste, odor, color and "feel" (the so called organoleptic
properties) and perhaps serves to stabilize the wine as well.
The bacterium principally responsible for this is Oenococcus oenos
(the bacterium fromerly known as Leuconostoc oenos). And
controlling this bacterial, malolactic fermentation can be tricky, so
budding winemakers (and yeast chauvinists) beware.
And remember: In vino, veritas
Steve Projan
Wyeth-Ayerst Research
