MEDIA RELEASE — December 10, 2025 — R0142
While consumers may not be reaching for a bottle of Soreli or Cabernet Volos this holiday season, Brock researchers say these new options are poised to make a splash in Ontario’s wine industry.
The University’s Cool Climate Oenology and Viticulture Institute (CCOVI) is exploring how these grape varieties can be used to make distinctive new wines that align with consumer trends and improve growers’ sustainability efforts.
“If you look at the demographics, you see the older population is still going for the bold reds, whereas the younger generation is looking for lighter wines,” says Jennifer Kelly, a Senior Scientist of Oenology at CCOVI.
“We want to remain aligned with the desires of all consumers and producers — and our research and outreach activities at CCOVI will continue to have that focus — but this new research is really exciting for a new segment of consumers who want environmentally responsible wines with lower sugar and alcohol content,” she says.
First grown in Europe in the early 2000s, Soreli and Cabernet Volos carry a significant proportion of genes from Vitis vinifera, the species of grapevine from which wine has historically been made around the world.
Because they are more disease and cold resistant, these new varieties are well-suited to cool climate wine regions and reduce the need for pesticide use, making them more sustainable. They also have a shorter ripening season, which makes them good candidates for producing wines with lower alcohol and thus an attractive option for younger consumers seeking out these qualities.
Only a handful of Niagara growers are currently producing Cabernet Volos and Soreli, which were approved for use in Vintners Quality Alliance (VQA) certified wines earlier this year. Kelly says a few industry partners graciously allowed CCOVI to purchase grapes for the project.
While making research wines from these grapes, the CCOVI team experimented with alternative yeast strains during the fermentation stage. This meant forgoing commercially available standard strains, often of the Saccharomyces cerevisiae species, for locally isolated strains of Saccharomyces uvarum.
Kelly says the results so far have been favourable from both a production and sensory point of view.
“These yeasts naturally produce less alcohol because they consume the grape sugars differently,” she says. “Instead of turning as much sugar into alcohol, they create other compounds — some of which contribute to the wine’s overall profile. The result is a lower-alcohol wine that still tastes balanced and expressive.”
For Niagara wineries, this can create a very desirable outcome by giving the wines a distinct flavour.
“It is an opportunity to highlight their own microbial terroir, as the yeasts we are utilizing have taken up residency in the winery and may be unique to the vineyard, giving them a regional signature for the winery itself,” Kelly says.
The CCOVI team has also been investigating the use of a post-fermentation filtration process that uses reverse osmosis to remove water and ethanol from wine.
“We take the wine and reduce its ethanol content by running it through this system, and with that, we have a higher level of control over the overall alcohol content of the wine,” says Kelly. “If we desire to drop the alcohol by one or three per cent, we can calculate that and do that accordingly.”
Working with Kelly is Holly Eaton (OEVC ’25), who completed CCOVI’s Certificate in Grape and Wine Science earlier this year and is now pursuing a master’s in Biological Sciences at Brock. She is the first graduate student in Canada to conduct research in this area.
Eaton describes the new varieties as being similar to local varieties, with the Soreli “having characteristics of Sauvignon Blanc.”
“You get some of those familiar aromas when smelling it. If people really like Sauvignon Blanc, they will want to try this wine,” she says.
Kelly and Eaton are just a few months away from bottling the project’s 2025 test wines.
“Once the wines are bottled, we will recruit a panel from within the University to come to our sensory lab to evaluate and provide feedback on flavour and aroma,” says Kelly.
The team also plans to share updates on their findings and engage community and industry members in the process through the Institute’s outreach efforts, such as conferences and the CCOVI Lecture Series.
Their work is supported by an Ontario Research Fund Research Excellence grant, which is funded by the Government of Ontario.
Niagara-West Member of Provincial Parliament Sam Oosterhoff applauds the research and CCOVI’s ability to identify and meet the needs of the Ontario grape and wine industry.
“With more consumers choosing low-alcohol wines in Ontario and across the globe, our local grape and wine sector needs to innovate and be able to pivot to changing market conditions,” says Oosterhoff.
“This ongoing work on new grape varieties and alternative yeast strains at the Cool Climate Oenology and Viticulture Institute at Brock University — supported by the Ontario Research Fund — is ensuring local growers and winemakers are staying ahead of the curve.”
For more information or for assistance arranging interviews:
*Sarah Ackles, Communications Specialist, Brock University [email protected] or 289-241-5483
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