AOC valorization of terroir nuances at plot scale in Burgundy

​For several years, the chemistry of taste has aroused high interest both from academics and industrials. Plant kingdom is a rich and reliable source of new taste-active compounds. Many sweet, bitter or sour molecules have been identified in various plants [1]. They belong to diverse chemical families and their sensory properties are strongly affected by slight structural modifications. As a consequence, the investigation of natural taste-active products in a given matrix appears as a major challenge for chemists. Such studies are particularly relevant in oenology since they allow a better understanding of wine and spirit taste.

Context and purpose of the study. Berry sunburn in vineyards is a recurring disorder that can cause severe yield loss. As sunburn observations are often associated with heat waves, a link to climate change is likely.

The aim of this work was to study the trapping capacity of four polyaniline polymers towards phenolic compounds in wine-like model solutions. METHODS: The model wine solution was composed of 12% (v/v) and 4 g/L of tartaric acid adjusted to pH = 3.6. A series of centrifuge tubes (15 mL) were filled with 10 mL of model solution enriched with 50 mg/L of five phenolic compounds (i.e., Gallic acid, caffeic acid, (+)-catechin, (-)-epicatechin, and rutin), and treated with different doses of PANI polymer (i.e., 0, 2, 4 and 8 g/L). After the addition of the polymer, the samples were stirred using a platform shaker at room temperature (20 ºC) for 2, 8, 16 and 24 h. All treatments included three replications.

Anthocyanin potential of grape berries is an important quality factor in wine production. Anthocyanin concentration and profile differ among varieties but it also depends on the environmental conditions, which are expected to be greatly modified by climate change in the future. These modifications may significantly modify the biochemical composition of berries at harvest, and thus wine typicity. Among the diverse approaches proposed to reduce the potential negative effects that climate change may have on grape quality, genetic diversity among clones can represent a source of potential candidates to select better adapted plant material for future climatic conditions. The effects of individual and combined factors associated to climate change (increase of temperature, rise of air CO2 concentration and water deficit) on the anthocyanin profile of different clones of Tempranillo that differ in the length of their reproductive cycle were studied. The aim was to highlight those clones more adapted to maintain specific Tempranillo typicity in the future. Fruit-bearing cuttings were grown in controlled conditions under two temperatures (ambient temperature versus ambient temperature + 4ºC), two CO2 levels (400 ppm versus 700 ppm) and two water regimes (well-watered versus water deficit), both in combination or independently, in order to simulate future climate change scenarios. Elevated temperature increased anthocyanin acylation, whereas elevated CO2 and water deficit favoured the accumulation of malvidin derivatives, as well as the acylation and tri-hydroxylation level of anthocyanins. Although the changes in anthocyanin profile observed followed a common pattern among clones, such impact of environmental conditions was especially noticeable in one of the most widely distributed Tempranillo clones, the accession RJ43.

The production of fermented alcoholic beverages involves numerous processes in which microorganisms and enzymes convert components derived from the raw material into a wide range of compounds that affect the sensory characteristics of the resulting product. It is estimated that there may be as many as 800 to 1,000 such compounds in wine. These compounds belong to different chemical groups such as esters, alcohols, carboxylic acids, carbonyl compounds, polyphenols, sugars and many others.