Tastry Launches AI-Assisted Smoke Impact Analysis Program with Oak Wise for California Winemakers

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Aug 11, 2021, 09:35 ET

SAN LUIS OBISPO, Calif., Aug. 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ - Tastry, a leading sensory sciences company, has announced today that it is working in collaboration with Oak Wise and their combined clients to ameliorate the effects of smoke tainted fruit in finished wine. Tastry will be offering testing and analysis services via its state-of-the-art laboratories to aid vintners with both smoke taint quantification and the application of the latest Oak Wise products for improved blending outcomes.

"Tastry is committed to doing its part in helping wineries navigate what's expected to be another detrimental fire season in California," said Katerina Axelsson, CEO of Tastry. "We have been helping our winery clients incorporate Oak Wise products into their production for the past year, and we are very pleased to now share some new and very promising AI-assisted techniques incorporating the latest products from Oak Wise to assist winemakers in reducing the perception of smoke taint in finished wine."

Smoke taint—the result of smoke compounds absorbed through the grape skin—has historically resulted in high levels of economic and environmental waste within the wine industry. Tastry and Oak Wise are both committed to helping wineries mitigate the risks associated with wildfire damage.

Tastry's Compublend™ combines advanced chemistry, machine learning, and proprietary artificial intelligence technology to help winemakers go beyond understanding the extent of smoke taint present in wines. CompuBlend™ also equips winemakers with consumer palate data that is leveraged to form blending outcomes which maximize value and help determine how to make the most out of the salvageable fruit. Moreover, Oak Wise is very effective at masking the aromatics and palate associated with smoke and structurally rebuilding wines after previous smoke taint treatments.

"Many winemakers approach smoke taint by trying to remove the compounds immediately after fermentation, which can be costly and often ineffective" according to Brian Spillane, Oak Wise Vice President. "Our company is developing methods that will reduce cost with products and techniques that do not remove or strip the positive attributes in wine."

This collaboration comes at a crucial time when wineries are being inundated with the threat of wildfires and the lasting impacts on their production.

"Last year, as labs in California were completely backed up with increased testing demand, we switched gears to successfully help over 100 wineries," said Axelsson. "Our efforts were able to impact millions of gallons of wine from going to waste and millions of dollars in production costs that could have very well put several wineries out of business. This year, we are equally dedicated to lessening the burden of testing requests from our other lab counterparts, and the launch of our own official smoke taint testing program will be offered in perpetuity."

Available for small, mid, and large-size wineries, Tastry offers lab analysis services for the detection of smoke markers in post-fermentation wine samples. Services offered include both basic and extended panels, as well as advanced analysis to detect both free and bound levels of many markers. Wineries that reserve their testing slots can expect a 48-hour turnaround on test results. To learn more, visit www.tastry.com.

About Tastry

Tastry was founded in 2016 with the understanding that each individual palate is as complex as a fingerprint. Powered by a proprietary chemistry methodology and revolutionary AI technology, Tastry is able to track and predict consumer preferences for products even before they hit the shelves. Through online and retail technology solutions, Tastry is rapidly democratizing the process of purchasing and selling wine with the goal to help wineries grow, streamline shopping experiences and provide consumers with their favourite wines, every time.

Tastry's patented computational blending process predicts consumer product scores with over 92% accuracy, connecting businesses to the data that powers human senses. Since its inception, Tastry technology has been implemented by over 150 wineries and retail clients to transform the way they bring products to market. Learn more at tastry.com.

About Oak Wise INC

Oak Wise is a leading producer of quality oak adjuncts for oenological applications with production facilities in France and the USA. Oak Wise source oak directly from managed forests and age it carefully under full control at company facilities. Complete resource and production control enable us to innovate, create and produce consistent oak adjuncts with a wide range of toasts and formats.

SOURCE Tastry