IVAS 2022 banner
IVES 9 IVES Conference Series 9 IVAS 9 IVAS 2022 9 Sensory and chemical profiles of Cabernet Sauvignon wines exposed to different irrigation regimes during heatwaves

Sensory and chemical profiles of Cabernet Sauvignon wines exposed to different irrigation regimes during heatwaves

Abstract

Heatwaves, defined as three or more consecutive days above average historical maximum temperatures, are having a significant impact on agricultural crop yields and quality, especially in arid or semi-arid regions with reduced water availability during the growing season. In grapevine, excessive heat can lead to not only crop loss, but a reduction in quality of the berries and resulting wine. The primary means of mitigating damage due to heatwaves is by applying excess irrigation water prior to and during the heatwave event, thus promoting evaporative cooling by the plant and reducing soil temperatures in the rooting zone and surface.  California wine-growing regions, among others, face a future of
decreased water availability, combined with increases in heatwave incidence, frequency, and intensity. Thus, we will require a greater understanding of the effects of heatwaves and water use at different times during development on grapevine physiology, berry composition, and wine chemistry and quality. In this study we evaluated the impact of different pre-heat wave irrigation practices on vine physiology and berry composition across the 2019 growing season in a commercial Cabernet Sauvignon vineyard in the Northern Central Valley of California, USA (Lodi, CA). Differential irrigation treatments were applied only when a heat event took place and started one or two days before each heatwave and continued until the last day of the heat event. Three irrigation treatments were implemented: a control or baseline, which was exposed to deficit irrigation and held at 60% ET, a second treatment where the irrigation was double the baseline  (2x baseline ET), and third treatment with triple the amount of water of the baseline (3x baseline ET). Replicated wine lots were fermented from each treatment following a standard red wine fermentation protocol. A trained panel characterized  sensorially the aroma and flavor profiles of the wines. Moreover, the wines’ volatile and phenolic profiles were analyzed and correlated to the sensory. 

We found that plants were able to recover from physiological stress caused by heat events but had a negative impact on berry biochemical traits. Negative effects on berry chemistry resulted from over and underwatering during heat waves. The sensory results showed how the differences found in treatments from a physiological and berry chemistry perspective are translated to the wines’ sensory properties and chemical characteristics

DOI:

Publication date: June 23, 2022

Issue: IVAS 2022

Type: Article

Authors

Cantu Annegret¹, Heymann Hildegarde¹, Campbell James¹, Galeano Martina¹, Sanchez Luis ², Dokoozlian Nicolas², Webley AD¹, Lerno L.¹, Ebler SE ¹,McElrone Andrew J.³, Bagshaw Sophia¹and Forrestel Elisabeth J.¹

¹Department of Viticulture and Enology, University of California Davis
²​E.&J. Gallo Winery
³USDA, Davis, California

Contact the author

Keywords

heatwaves, irrigation, cabernet sauvignon, wine chemical characteristics, sensory analysis

Tags

IVAS 2022 | IVES Conference Series

Citation

Related articles…

Evaluation of climate change impacts at the Portuguese Dão terroir over the last decades: observed effects on bioclimatic indices and grapevine phenology

In the last decades the growers of the Portuguese Dão winegrowing region (center of Portugal) are experiencing changes in climate that are influencing either grape phenology berry health and ripening. Aiming to study the relationships between climate indices (CI), seasonal weather and grapevine phenology, in this work long-term climate and phenological data collected at the experimental vineyard of the Portuguese Dão research centre between 1958 and 2019 (61 years) for the red variety Touriga Nacional, was analyzed. The trends over time for the classical temperature-based indices (Growing Season Temperature – GST -, Growing Degree Days – GDD, Huglin Index – HI and Cool Night Index – CI) presented a significantly positive slope while the Dryness Index (DI) showed a negative trend over the last 61 years. Regarding grapevine phenology, an average advance of 4.5 days per decade in the harvest day was observed throughout the last 61 years. Consequently, the weather conditions during the ripening period have changed, showing an increasing trend over time in the average temperature (higher magnitude in the maximum than in the minimum temperature) and a decrease in the accumulated rainfall. A regression analysis showed that ~50% of harvest date variability over years was explained by the temperature-based indices variability. These observed effects of climate change on bioclimatic indices and corresponding anticipation of harvest date can still be considered advantageous for the Dão terroir as it allows to achieve an optimal berry ripening before the common equinox rains and, therefore, avoid the potential negative impacts of the rainfall on berry health and composition.

Impact of grape ripening and post-harvest withering on must composition and fermentation kinetics

Postharvest dehydration is a widely employed technique in winemaking to enhance sugar concentration and secondary metabolites from grapes. Different grape varieties exhibit varying responses in terms of dehydration rate and the resulting chemical composition.

Genetic traceability of the varietal origin of wines: a robust application for must and wines during alcoholic fermentation

Industry and regulatory agencies have developed regulations to ensure authenticity and compliance with wine composition limits. However, this can be truncated by the absence of simple and robust analytical methodologies, uninfluenced by the environment, different oenological techniques and cultural practices. Genetic fingerprinting is the most powerful tool for unequivocal varietal identification; it is not affected by the environment or agronomic practices; however, its usefulness in musts and wines has been controversial and there is currently no routine certification of varietal origin based on DNA analysis.

Wine microbial diversity and cross-over applications: emerging results and future perspectives

AIM: Cross-over applications are an emerging technological approach in food microbiology where a microorganism from one traditional specific fermentation process is used to improve quality and safety in another agri-food production/chain (Dank et al., 2021). A complex microbial diversity is found in association with fermentation in wine, including Saccharomyces, non-Saccharomyces and malolactic bacteria,  all microorganisms versatile in terms of enological utilisation (Tempère et al., 2018). Here, we propose a systematic literature review highlighting the existing trends and possible future applications related to cross-over exploitation of wine-related microbiota. 

Role of climate on grape characteristics of “Moscato bianco” in Piemonte (Italy)

L’objectif de l’étude était de connaître le rôle du climat sur les aspects phénologiques du cépage « Moscato bianco » dans les différentes zones de production du vin Moscato d’Asti aocg en Piemonte (Italie) et ses effets sur l’époque de vendange. La représentation cartographique ( échelle 1 :25000) de exposition, altitude, climat, index