WAC 2022 banner
IVES 9 IVES Conference Series 9 WAC 9 WAC 2022 9 1 - WAC - Oral presentations 9 Evolution of chemical pattern related to Valpolicella aroma ‘terroir’ during bottle aging

Evolution of chemical pattern related to Valpolicella aroma ‘terroir’ during bottle aging

Abstract

Valpolicella is a famous Italian wine-producing region. Wines produced in its different sub-regions are believed to be aromatically different, as confirmed by recent studies in our laboratory. Aging is a very common practice in Valpolicella and it is required by the appellation regulation for periods up to four years require wines. The aim of this study was to investigate the evolution, during aging, of volatile chemical composition of Valpolicella wines obtained from grapes harvested in different sub-regions during different vintages.

Corvina and Corvinone grapes, the two main varieties of Valpolicella appellation, were harvested from five different vineyard blocks located in two sub-regions within Valpolicella during three consecutive vintages (2017-2019). Winemaking was performed under standardized conditions. An accelerated aging protocol was applied placing wines at 16°C and 40 °C for 30 days in epoxy resin sealed vials. Free volatile compounds as well as those obtained through hydrolysis of glycosidic precursors were analysed with gas chromatography mass spectrometry (GC-MS) coupled with SPE and SPME extractions.

Application of multivariate data analysis techniques to young wines allowed to identify volatile chemical patterns representing the unique aroma chemical signature of the geographical origin of each wine, regardless of vintages. In the case of aged wines, aroma signatures of individual geographical origin were preserved to a good extent after aging. In the case of Corvina, ageing slightly reduced the diversity associated with vineyard signature, conversely in Corvinone it seemed to have enhanced it. Terpenes were at the same times among the main drivers of vineyard signatures of both young and aged wines but also among the compounds most affected by ageing treatments. Highly relevant correlations were found between the decrease of some of the terpenes and the occurrence or increase of others. These transformations involve odor- active compounds with implications for floral and balsamic attributes. Despite the deep changes occurring during aging, aged wines retained an aroma chemical signature that was characteristic of their geographical origin.

DOI:

Publication date: June 9, 2022

Issue: WAC 2022

Type: Article

Authors

Giovanni Luzzini, Davide, Slaghenaufi, Maurizio, Ugliano

Presenting author

Giovanni Luzzini – Università di Verona

Università di Verona | Università di Verona

Contact the author

Keywords

 Red wine aroma – Terroir – Chemical signature of geographic identity – Valpolicella – Aging

Tags

IVES Conference Series | WAC 2022

Citation

Related articles…

IMPACT OF CLIMATIC ZONES ON THE AROMATIC PROFILE OF CORVINA WINES IN THE VALPOLICELLA REGION

In Italy, in the past two decades, the rate of temperature increases (0.0369 °C per year) was slightly higher compared to the world average (0.0313 °C per year). It has also been indicated that the number and intensity of heat waves have increased considerably in the last decades. (IEA, 2022). Viticultural zones can be classified with climatic indexes. Huglin’s index (HI) considers the temperature in a definite area and has been considered as reliable to evaluate the thermal suitability for winegrape production (Zhang et al., 2023).

CONVOLUTIONAL NEURAL NETWORK TO PREDICT GENETIC GROUP AND SULFUR TOLERANCE OF BRETTANOMYCES BRUXELLENSIS

[lwp_divi_breadcrumbs home_text="IVES" use_before_icon="on" before_icon="||divi||400" module_id="publication-ariane" _builder_version="4.20.4" _module_preset="default" module_text_align="center" module_font_size="16px" text_orientation="center"...

Contaminations croisées avec les produits phytosanitaires dans les vins bio. Sources potentielles et mesures de prévention.

Organic wines, although resulting from a production method based on the non-use of synthetic phytosanitary products, are not always free of residues. These residues can result from cross-contamination during production in the field or in the cellar, during the production or aging of the wine. In recent years, with the improvement of analysis techniques, a molecule, phosphonic acid, the main metabolite of fosetyl-al (banned in organic farming) is regularly quantified in organic wines and its origin is not clearly identified.

Construction of a 3D vineyard model using very high resolution airborne images

In recent years there has been a growth in interest and number of research studies regarding the application of remote optical and thermal sensing by unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) in agriculture and viticulture. Many papers report on the use of images to map or estimate the growth and water status of plants, or the heterogeneity of different parcels. Most often, NDVI or other similar indices are used.

Ecophysiological performance of Vitis rootstocks under water stress

The use of rootstocks tolerant to soil water deficit is an interesting strategy to cope with limited water availability. Currently, several nurseries are breeding new genotypes, but the physiological basis of its responses under water stress are largely unknown. To this end, an ecophysiological assessment of the conventional 110-Richter (110R) and SO4, and the new M1 and M4 rootstocks was carried out in potted ungrafted plants. During one season, these Vitis genotypes were grown under greenhouse conditions and subjected to two water regimes, well-watered and water deficit. Water potentials of plants under water deficit down to < -1.4 MPa, and net photosynthesis (AN) <5 μmol m-2 s-1 did not cause leaf oxidative stress damage compared to well-watered conditions in any of the genotypes. The antioxidant capacity was sufficient to neutralize the mild oxidative stress suffered. Under both treatments, gravimetric differences in daily water use were observed among genotypes, leading to differences in the biomass of root, shoot and leaf. Under well-watered conditions, SO4 and 110R were the most vigorous and M1 and M4 the least. However, under water stress, SO4 exhibited the greatest reduction in biomass while M4 showed the lowest. Remarkably, under these conditions, SO4 reached the least negative stem water potential (Ψstem), while M1 reduced stomatal conductance (gs) and AN the most. In addition, SO4 and M1 genotypes also showed the highest and lowest hydraulic conductance values, respectively. Our results suggest that there are differences in water use regulation among genotypes, not only attributed to differences in stomatal regulation or intrinsic water use efficiency at the leaf level. Therefore, because no differences in canopy-to-root ratio were achieved, it is hypothesized that xylem vessel anatomical differences may be driving the reported differences among rootstocks performance. Results demonstrate that each Vitis rootstock differs in its ecophysiological responses under water stress.