Vineyard management practices to reduce sugar content on ‘Monastrell’ grapes

Grapevine resilience to climate change has become one of the most pressing topics in the Viticulture & Enology field. Vineyard health demands understanding the mechanisms that explain the direct and indirect interactions between environmental stressors. The current climate change scenario, where drought and heat-wave are more frequent and intense, strongly demands improving our knowledge of environmental stresses. During a heatwave, the ambient temperature rises above the plant’s average tolerance threshold and, generally, above 35 oC plant’s adaptation to heat stress is activated.

Wine produced under Designation of Origin (DOP) Ribeiro, the oldest DOP in Galicia (NW Spain), are elaborated using local grape cultivars, grown at the valleys of Miño, Avia and Arnoia rivers. The landscape formed by slopes and terraces and the peculiar climate of continental character, softened by the proximity of Atlantic Ocean, make it an area of excellent aptitude for vine cultivation. In addition, small-scale farming and the use of traditional techniques for vineyard management provide a great diversity to Ribeiro wines. This study presents the evaluation of red and white wines (bottled or bulk wines) from DOP Ribeiro, produced between years 2018-2022.

Light is responsible for adverse reactions in wine including the formation of unpleasant flavors, loss of vitamins or photodegradation of anthocyanins. Among them, the riboflavin degradation leads to the formation of undesirable volatile compounds, known as light-struck taste. These photo-chemical reactions could be avoided by simply using opaque packaging. However, most rosé wines are kept in transparent bottles due to different commercial reasons. Some agri-food waste extracts have been studied for their photoprotective action which turn to be highly correlated with phenolic content [1].

Spain is the country with the largest wine-producing area in the EU and its productivity is largely controlled applying fungicides. However, residues of these compounds can move and contaminate surface and groundwater. The objective of this work was to evaluate the capacity of bioadsorbents from different origin to adsorb and immobilize tetraconazole by themselves or when applied as organic soil amendment, and to prevent soil and water contamination by this fungicide. The adsorption of tetraconazole by 3 organic residues: spent mushroom substrate (SMS), green compost (GC) and vine pruning sawdust (VP), as well as by vineyard soils unamended and amended individually with these residues at 1.5% (w/w) was evaluated using the batch equilibrium technique.

The vital role of soils in supporting life on our planet cannot be overstated. Soils provide numerous ecosystem services and functions, including biomass production, carbon sequestration, physical support, biological habitat, and genetic reserve, among others. Understanding the characteristics and sensitivity of soils in a specific terroir, along with effective soil management practices, is crucial for the sustainable management of natural resources.