amaea’s sensible polymers allow US and NZ wine producers to selectively take away undesirable sensory compounds and recuperate higher-value wine
Hamilton, New Zealand, 28 Might 2025 – A brand new precision wine know-how is altering how winemakers tackle high quality challenges and recuperate worth from fault-affected and closely phenolic wines. amaea, a New Zealand developer of custom-engineered molecularly imprinted polymers (MIPs), is gaining trade validation for its novel molecular filtration know-how for precision wine remediation and palate fining.
From premium winemakers in New Zealand to top-tier producers in California, amaea’s selective, sustainable filtration answer, launched in late 2023, is getting used to remediate and improve wine high quality. The proprietary MIP beads, imprinted with billions of binding websites, selectively goal and seize undesirable molecules—comparable to pyrazines, ethyl phenols, and phenolic compounds chargeable for sensory profiles—and take away them whereas preserving the wine’s important varietal character, shade, and taste.
“Winemakers face actual challenges when undesirable, traits or impacts seem of their wines, that conventional strategies can’t resolve,” says amaea CEO Aiden Tapping. “Our molecular filtration answer offers them management to focus on and take away the compounds accountable for undesirable sensory profiles – with out stripping away fascinating characters. This recovers worth, saves wine from being downgraded or discarded, and finally protects model integrity.”
Wines tainted by “off aromas,” comparable to these brought on by stink bugs or pyrazines in addition to wines that require vital bitterness administration pose a serious monetary problem for producers globally. Over the previous yr, amaea RMx know-how for remediating ‘off’ aromas and wines impacted by frost, pyrazines, Brettanomyces, MOG and different challenges, and amaea PFx know-how for palate fining, have supported over 50 distinctive producers in treating greater than 400,000 gallons/ 1.5 million liters of wine, serving to them recuperate an estimated USD$3.5 million/ NZD$6.2 million in wine worth previously 12 months.
“It’s unbelievable to see the constant validation from the trade, highlighting the flexibility and worth of our know-how,” says Tapping. “We’ve targeted on giving among the prime winemakers the arrogance to attempt our know-how, even on small volumes. Now, on the again of buyer success, we’re gearing up for a rise within the quantity of wines handled by each present and new clients as our know-how good points market traction.”
Good Polymer, Higher Wines: Buyer Successes
amaea’s know-how has efficiently helped prime winemakers recuperate wine to its supposed program, high-quality and worth, showcasing all kinds of economic buyer functions:
- Jackson Household Wines (US) has efficiently trialled amaea to switch single-use fining brokers by lowering bitterness in hard-pressed white wine. Dr Caroline Merrell, Senior Supervisor of Winemaking Technical Companies at Jackson Household Wines says: “One space the place we see lots of potential is changing single-use fining brokers with reusable media, comparable to amaea’s MIPs. Throughout a current trial, amaea’s MIP remedy decreased bitterness and was most well-liked sensorially over wines handled with conventional fining brokers. The outcomes had been spectacular and can permit us to concurrently enhance high quality in choose wines whereas lowering waste from single-use inputs.”
- Cleomont Vineyards (NZ) elevated the saleable high quality of wine the place conventional strategies couldn’t resolve the problems. Confronted with a very phenolic 2024 Marlborough Pinot Gris, famend New Zealand winemaker and grower Digger Hennessy, the proprietor of Cleomont Vineyards, lowered the wine’s extreme bitterness and enhanced its sweetness, with amaea’s MIPs selectively capturing the offending phenolic compounds. “The wine didn’t want an enormous remedy. It removed the very annoying bitterness on the again palate that we had been struggling to get out. The MIP remedy made it lots smoother and now I’m proud of it.”
- Marisco Vineyards (NZ) remediated a stink bug-affected wine again to its supposed program. Marisco Vineyards celebrated an distinctive 2024 classic. But, one block of Pinot Noir confronted an sudden situation when a species of Pentatomidae, generally often known as the Australasian inexperienced defend or stink bug, was discovered amongst among the grapes. Conventional methods for stink bug remediation give attention to masking the distinctive vegetative aromas brought on by the bugs. Nonetheless, amaea’s extremely selective know-how removes undesirable molecules chargeable for the undesirable vegetal and herbaceous traits. “Being able to run wine by means of MIPs, realizing it gained’t bodily change aside from eradicating the goal molecules, is an enormous plus,” says winemaker Alun Kilby, who sees countless potential functions for amaea’s know-how.
- Giesen (NZ) used amaea PFx instead of gelatin (a fining agent), to deal with bitterness of their 0% Merlot. Consulting winemaker Duncan Shouler, former Director of Winemaking at Giesen Group, helps know-how, change and innovation within the wine trade to remain related and evolve. At Giesen, he noticed a chance to make use of amaea PFx of their 0% Merlot. “Usually, once you take away alcohol from wine, sure traits and traits begin to stand out. For Merlots, the tannins develop into outstanding, and the heat and sweetness are misplaced. For palate fining, gelatin is historically added, which, although efficient at softening phenolic content material, isn’t vegan-friendly and isn’t completely selective, which implies it removes greater than is meant. At Giesen, when launched to amaea PFx, we noticed a way that enabled us to steadiness polyphenols with out counting on animal additions; it was environmentally conscientious and had the potential to supply a extra financially sustainable various to conventional fining practices.”
Further Purposes: Remediating Smoke-Impacted Wine
In late 2023, amaea launched amaea VPx, its smoke remediation answer, which makes use of tailor-made MIPs in a one-pass filtration system. A2024 WINnovation Award winner, amaea VPx know-how efficiently removes the risky phenols from smoke-impacted wine to a stage that sits under sensory thresholds.
To increase its place as a next-generation associate for quality-focused winemakers, amaea’s MIP options, already commercially utilized in the US, Canada, and New Zealand, will launch in Australia later this yr with a future give attention to Europe.
For extra info see: https://www.amaea.com/
About amaea Ltd.
amaea is a world-leading innovator in molecular filtration, empowering pure beverage producers to take away undesirable molecules brought on by local weather and environmental challenges.
amaea’s reusable molecularly imprinted polymer (MIP) know-how is custom-engineered to selectively seize goal molecules from liquids at scale. This enables beverage producers to tailor the sensory profile of their merchandise utilizing a low-impact manufacturing answer.
amaea’s MIP know-how for wine is already in industrial use throughout the wine trade in Canada, the US, and New Zealand, the place the corporate is headquartered. Further beverage functions are presently in improvement.
