Vite e territorio. Il caso della Franciacorta nel medioevo

After some decades sunk into oblivion, pruning has recently recovered the focus of grape growers and viticulturists worldwide. Attention is now being paid to the respect the sap flow continuity and to pruning wounds, as they may affect the general performance and longevity of the plant. The longevity and profitability are strongly affected by the increasing incidence of grapevine wood diseases (GWD), intensified by the omission of good pruning practices and leading to an increasingly aggressive pruning. The purpose of this study is to provide an objective evaluation of the short- and mid-term implications of different pruning practices that differ in the degree of observation several of pruning principles.

Malolactic fermentation (MLF) is a secondary step in the vinification process and it follows alcoholic fermentation (AF) which is predominantly carried out by Saccharomyces cerevisiae. These two processes result in the degradation of metabolites to produce secondary metabolites which also contribute to the final wine flavour and quality. AF results in the production of ethanol and carbon dioxide from sugars and MLF stems from the degradation of L-malic acid (a dicarboxylic acid) to L-lactic acid (a monocarboxylic acid). The latter process results in a smoother texture as the acidity of the wine is reduced by the process, it also adds to the flavour complexity of the wine.

Primary and secondary metabolites are major components of grape quality and wine typicity. Their accumulation is interconnected through a complex metabolic network, which is still not well understood. This study aims to investigate how the enzymes of central carbon metabolism interact with anthocyanin biosynthesis during grape berry development: does the accumulation of anthocyanins, which represents a non-negligible diversion of carbon metabolic fluxes, require reprogramming of central enzymes or is it controlled downstream of central metabolism? To this end, 23 enzymes involved in central carbon metabolism pathways have been analyzed in the berries of 3 grape cultivars, which have close genetic background but distinct temporal dynamics of anthocyanin accumulation.

The use of oenological tannins during winemaking has been mostly studied for improving colour traits and stability on red wines. Their effectiveness mainly depends on the tannin composition, grape variety and winemaking approach [1].

Over the past fifteen years or so, a number of theories have emerged on more or less new pruning practices.