Wine Spoiling Phenomena

For consumption, foods should be safe, healthy, and uncontaminated; nevertheless, foods are subjected to a deterioration of the microbial, physical, and sensory properties, which causes the reduction of the food quality and the loss of ca. 10% of the total product.Yeasts, molds, and bacteria are the main factors responsible for microbial contaminations: they grow in food, producing substances that alter texture, color, odor and appearance, and making the products unacceptable. As microorganisms are ubiquitous, they can be easily transferred to the food through the hands of the operator as well as through contact with surfaces or equipment.In this chapter we investigate the main microorganisms responsible for spoilage focusing on wine, an alcoholic beverage, to highlight the most common species found in this product, their modes of action, and the diseases and alteration processes which they cause.