The excess of tartaric salts determines in certain conditions the formation of characteristic crystals that fall in the form of sediment. The crystallization and sedimentation of the tartaric salts are useful when they take place in the sedimentation vessel and are an inconvenience, especially from a commercial and sensorial point of view, when they appear in the bottled wines. The formation of a small crystal, called the nucleus in the liquid stage, corresponds to the creation of an interface between the two phases, process that requires a lot of energy, called interfacial energy. In the wine, the phenomenon is influenced by the presence of macromolecules inhibited by the phenomenon of agglomeration of the tartaric salts.
