Identification of lactic acid bacteria isolated from Portuguese wines and musts by SDS‐PAGE

Thirty‐two strains were isolated from spoiled port wines, from musts and from various styles of young, Northeastern Portuguese red table wines that had undergone spontaneous malolactic fermentation. Comparison of their SDS‐PAGE whole‐cell protein patterns with an SDS‐PAGE database of lactic acid bacteria indicated that the isolates were members of the species Leuconostoc oenos or Lactobacillus paracasei subsp. paracasei. The latter were found in low acidity table wines and in port wine. The isolation of Lactobacillus paracasei strains from wines indicates the importance of using known strains for wine deacidification because spontaneous malolactic fermentation of table wines can occur from an indigenous flora, adapted to the particular composition of the wine.