Basic Terroir Unit (U.T.B.) and quality control label for honey; making the designations of origin (A.O.C) and« crus » more coherent

The recovery of bioactive compounds from grape and wine by-products is currently an important and necessary objective for sustainability. Grape pomace is one of the main by-products and is a rich source of some bioactive compounds such as polyphenols, polysaccharides, fatty acids, minerals and seed oil. Polysaccharides contained in the grape cell wall can be rhamnogalacturonans type II (RG-II), polysaccharides rich in arabinose and galactose (PRAG), mannoproteins (MP), homogalacturonans (HG) and non pectic polysaccharides (NPP).

Les travaux menés, dans le cadre du programme départemental pour la connaissance et la valorisation des terroirs viticoles, sur l’aire A.O.C. Coteaux du Languedoc / Pic Saint-Loup ont permis d’appliquer à l’échelle d’une Appellation d’Origine Contrôlée (13 communes), une méthodologie d’étude axée sur les aspects sol/climat/topographie qui concourent à l’identification des terroirs naturels, facteurs de typicité des vins.

Hydroxytyrosol (HT) is a bioactive phenolic compound with antioxidant activity. Yeast synthetise tyrosol from tyrosine by the Ehrlich pathway which is subsequently hydroxylated to HT. The aim of the present work is to develop and validate an UHPLC–HRMS method to assess the metabolites involved in this pathway as well as to screen Spanish commercial wines for HT bioactive compound.

Irrigation is an important practice to influence vine quality, especially in Mediterranean regions, characterized by hot summers and severe droughts during the growing season. This study focused on deficit irrigation regime influence on amino acids composition of Monastrell grapevines under semiarid conditions (Albacete, Southeastern of Spain). In 2019, two treatments were applied: non-irrigation (NI) and regulated deficit irrigation (RDI), watered at 30% of the estimated crop evapotranspiration from fruit set to onset of veraison. Grape amino acids content was analyzed by HPLC. Berries from non-irrigated vines showed higher concentration of several amino acids, such as tryptophan (73%), arginine (70%), lysine (36%), isoleucine (27%), and leucine (21%), compared to RDI grapes. Arginine is, together with ammonium ion, the principal nitrogen source for yeasts during the alcoholic fermentation; while isoleucine, tryptophan, and leucine are precursors of fermentative volatile compounds, key compounds for wine quality. Moreover, NI treatment increased in a 14% the total amino acids content in grapes compared to RDI treatment. The reported effects might be because yield was 70% higher in RDI vines than in the NI ones and, therefore, the sink demand was increased in the irrigated vines. In addition, NI vines suffered more severe water stress and it is known that the amino acids synthesis and accumulation can be influenced by the plant response to stress. According to the results, the irrigation regime showed effect on amino acids concentration in Monastrell grapes under semiarid conditions. Grapes from non-irrigated vines showed a higher content of several amino acids relevant to the fermentative process and to the wine aroma compounds formation. It is demonstrated that the final content of nitrogen-related components in grapes is influenced by the irrigation regime. The convenience of the irrigation strategy to suggest will depend on the desired wine style and the target yield levels.

The recent expansion of arid areas due to climate change is putting grapevine and the other traditional productions at risk in all Mediterranean countries with a limited availability of fundamental resources such as water. It is possible to improve the resilience of vineyards by developing sustainable agricultural practices based on biological and natural resources such as endophytic microorganisms that colonize inner plant tissues, and which can potentially increase the tolerance to abiotic stresses. A selection of grapevine endophytes was conducted from 2021 to 2023 as part of the PRIMA project PROSIT.