Lalvin EC-1118 yeast is considered one of the best all round yeast strains. It is a wide temperature range that it can work within, and a high tolerance for alcohol – up to 18% by volume.

With very compact lees, it makes for racking wine off the lees a much easier job. Due to its superb abilities to withstand a wide range of conditions, it is often the yeast strain of choice that comes with commercial wine kits.
One disadvantage of EC-118 is the fact that under some circumstances, it can produce a high volume of SO2 gas. When malolactic acid fermentation is desired, the presence of SO2 can be detrimental.

Every home winemaker should have extra packages of EC-1118 on hand. It is the yeast of choice for restarting stuck fermentations.

It is classified as a Saccharomyces cerevisiae bayanus

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