Response of Albariño to local environmental conditions in Uruguay

Abstract

Context and purpose of the study

Albariño is a white cultivar that has been recently promoted in Uruguay due to its ability to maintain high berry quality even in adverse climate conditions during ripening. This study aims to assess the effect of different topographic conditions on Albariño agronomic behavior and oenological potential.

Material and methods

Ten Albariño plots located at different aspects of exposure, altitude and slope were selected in the emerging wine-growing region of Eastern Uruguay. To assess spatial temperature variability due to the topography conditions, a temperature sensor was installed in each plot. Bioindicators for grapevine were calculated, and relationships between site topography and plant responses (yield components and berry composition) were analyzed using climatic and agronomic data recorded over three seasons (2019, 2020, and 2021).

Results

In the plots of Albariño under study, we found that the interactions between topography and berry metabolites varied through the seasons. The slope was the topography factor which showed a more substantial impact on local temperature and berry metabolites. Plots on steeper slopes (8.8 to 11.6º) favored grapes with a higher acid content (more than 0.43 gH2SO4 per liter), while plots at lower elevations provided berries with higher amounts of secondary metabolites (more than 1.6 units of phenol richness). No significant statistical relationships were found between yield, local climate, and topography. This cultivar showed less differences in berry composition associated with temporal and spatial climate variability due to topography than other cultivars like Tannat (red cultivar).