R2
A very cold-tolerant strain that emphasises tropical and floral aromatics, and keeps fermenting at temperatures where others stop.
Alcohol tolerance
16%
10% - 16%
Temperature
10-18 C
10C - 18C
Highest must it will finish
28 Brix
about 1.119, giving 15.3 to 16.7% if it went all the way
Nitrogen demand
Medium
Fine on grape must; feed a fruit or honey must in stages.
Sold as
Lalvin R2
An affiliate search link, scoped to this strain rather than to a guessed listing.
Where it belongs
- Riesling
- Gewurztraminer
- Late harvest
Pitching it
Rehydrate properly rather than sprinkling dry yeast on cold must, and plan the nutrient before you pitch: staged additions over the first third of the fermentation, not one dose at the start.
Recipes on this site that use it
Other white and rose strains
EC-1118
18%The workhorse and the blunt instrument: ferments almost anything, almost anywhere, to almost dryness. Neutral to the point of stripping aroma, and it will out-compete anything else in the bucket.
QA23
16%A Portuguese strain with high beta-glucosidase, so it releases the bound thiols in Sauvignon Blanc and Albarino that would otherwise stay locked in the juice. Ferments cold and clean.
D47
15%Rich and round, producing a lot of polysaccharide on the lees, which is what makes it the standard choice for barrel-fermented Chardonnay and for mead.
VIN 13
17%A South African strain that produces intense passionfruit and guava esters. Fast, hungry and capable of overwhelming a delicate variety.
CY3079
15%The white Burgundy strain: flinty, buttery and fresh-bread rather than fruity, and it works with malolactic instead of against it.
71B
14%Metabolises up to a third of the malic acid during fermentation, which makes it the strain for anything too sharp to be pleasant. Also softens young country wine noticeably.