Term for the yeast residue after fermentation that remains in the wine after racking into another container and causes the fine lees. These are relatively fine (small) yeast particles, some of which are still alive but no longer necessarily capable of fermentation, which slowly sink to the bottom of the wine. They have numerous positive properties, give the wine a sparkling freshness and also have a reductive effect. Filtration must be carried out to remove them as completely as possible. Many producers deliberately store white wines in particular for longer periods on the fine lees. The coarse yeast residues remaining in the fermentation tank after the wine has been drawn off, which have already sunk to the bottom during fermentation, are referred to as lees or full lees.
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