Collective term for defects or undesirable and unacceptable faults in wine, which manifest themselves primarily through unpleasant to disgusting odour and/or taste or "only" in appearance (haze, cloudiness, crystals, etc.). They are detected, among other things, during a wine evaluation and wine address, whereby then with certain faults or a certain extent such wines are dropped from the rating. Sometimes a distinction is made between wine faults (wine defects) and wine diseases. The latter are changes in wine caused by micro-organisms(bacteria, fungi, viruses), which can increase in intensity if appropriate countermeasures are not taken. Many of these defects and faults in wine can be prevented or at least reduced or, in some cases, even subsequently eliminated by appropriate preservation and fining methods using suitable agents.
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