Variations of soil attributes in vineyards influence their reflectance spectra

Grapevine (Vitis spp.) is a globally significant fruit crop and enhancing its agronomic and oenological traits is crucial to meet changing agricultural conditions and consumer demands.

Recently, foliar treatments with mineral-based compounds have shown positive effects on grapevine production by protecting grape from thermal excesses and reducing the decoupling between technological and phenolic maturity caused by climate change. Unraveling the effect of mineral particle applications on grape-associated microbes is pivotal for successful wine processing, due to the influence of the microbiota on wine composition and stability. To our knowledge, this is the first work that comprehensively studied the effects of kaolin and chabasite-rich zeolitites treatments on grape-related microorganisms (by real-time PCR quantification of total fungi, Hanseniospora uvarum, Metschnikowia pulcherrima, plant-associated bacteria and lactic acid bacteria), the expression of genes related to the flavonoid biosynthesis (PAL1, CHS1, F3H2, DFR, LDOX, UFGT, MYBA1, GST4, FLS4 genes) and the berry composition (°Brix, pH, acidity and anthocyanin concentrations) in cv. Sangiovese during ripening in two growing seasons (2019 and 2020).

The postharvest dehydration of grapes is a traditional practice to obtain wines with unique traits (e.g. sweet, dry/reinforced). The modern facilities (dehydrating rooms) used for this purpose are equipped with systems for artificially controlling the inside environment parameters, to obtain the desired dehydration kinetic and preserve the grapes from grey mold (Botrytis cinerea) infection, However, the conditioning systems are extremely energy-demanding and the identification and practical applications of solutions effective in controlling/reducing the postharvest decay would reduce the costs of the operation of the dehydration facilities. To this end, we explored the potential of ozone-based treatments on harvested grapes and preliminarily tested if the treatment could impact the normal behavior and metabolism of grapes during the traditionally slow dehydration practice.

The effect of Partial Rootzone Drying (PRD) on fruit and wine composition has been investigated. At harvest, total anthocyanin and phenolic concentration of Shiraz and Cabernet Sauvignon fruit was either unaltered or increased by PRD relative to control irrigation over two seasons. Where there was an increase in anthocyanin concentration

In recent years, numerous studies have been carried out at the OIV on oenological tannins, both with regard to oenological properties and methods of characterization. The results of these recent studies have led to the revision of the general monograph and the drafting of four new monographs, one for each of the four chemical classes into which the tannins have been grouped: ellagitannins, gallotannins, procyanidins/prodelphinidins, profisetinidins/prorobinetinins.