Potassium (K) is analyzed at crush so that the winemaking staff can quantify the potential for the wine to precipitate KHT (Potassium Hydrogen Tartrate) which occurs in all wines during their ageing. K is also a good indicator of vineyard soil management as high K levels indicate incorrect use of fertilizers during the growing season.

With red wines, KHT usually precipitates whilst in the barrel during its conservation whereas with white wines this happens in the cold room as “Cold Stabilization” prior to bottling.