Water and nutritional savings shape non-structural carbohydrates in grapevine (Vitis vinifera L.) cuttings

In the 19th century, devastating outbreaks of phylloxera (Daktulosphaira vitifoliae Fitch), almost brought European viticulture to its knees. Phylloxera does not only take energy in form of sugars from the vine, but also affects the up- and down- regulations of genes, acts as a carbon sink and reprograms the physiology of the grapevines, including nutrient uptake and the defense system [1]. A key trait of rootstocks is the ability to perform well under high lime conditions as about 30 % of the land surface has calcareous soil. Iron deficiency not only causes the well-known problems of lime-induced chlorosis and stunted growth, but also affects the entire plant metabolism.

The application of remote and proximal sensing is a fast and efficient method to monitor grapevine vegetative and physiological parameters and is considered valuable to derive information on associated yield and quality traits in the vineyard. Further details can be obtained by the application of molecular analysis at the gene expression level aiming at elucidating how pathways controlling the formation of different grape quality traits are influenced by spatial variability. This work aims at evaluating intra-vineyard variability in grape composition at harvest and at comparing this with remotely sensed canopy vegetation data and molecular-based approaches.

Consumption of wine/alcoholic beverages remains a topic of great uncertainty and controversy worldwide. The term “no safe level” dominates the media communication and policy ever since population studies in 2018 [1,2] were published, which denied the existence of a J-curve and suggested that ANY consumption of an alcoholic beverage is harmful to health. The scientific evidence accumulated during the past decades about the health benefits of moderate wine consumption, were questioned and drinking guidelines considered to be too loose.

Nitrogen (N) is quite important nutrient in grapevine development and must quality, but under Mediterranean climatic conditions, available soil water (ASW) during grapevine development can also influence vigour and must quality. The aim was to determine the influence of soil nitrate (NO3-) availability on N foliar, yield, and must quality in vineyards with similar available water holding capacity (AWC). For this purpose, four cv. Tempranillo (Vitis vinifera L.) vineyards were selected. All of them are placed in Uruñuela municipality (La Rioja, Spain), separated less than 2.5 km and in a slope <1 %, in soils with similar soil chemistry properties and with similar rooting depth (ranging between 105 cm and 110 cm).

Brandy de Jerez (BJ) is a spirit drink made exclusively from spirits and wine distillates and is characterized by the use of casks for aging that previously contained Sherries. The quality and sensory complexity of BJ depend on the raw materials and some factors: grape variety, conditions during processing the wine and its distillation, as well as the aging in the cask. Therefore, the original compounds of the grapes from which it comes are of great interest being in most cases the Airén variety. Their relationship with the quality of the musts and the wines obtained from them has been studied (1) and varies each year of harvest depending on the weather conditions (2).