terclim by ICS banner
IVES 9 IVES Conference Series 9 International Congress on Grapevine and Wine Sciences 9 2ICGWS-2023 9 Wine racking in the winery and the use of inerting gases

Wine racking in the winery and the use of inerting gases

Abstract

The O2 uptake in the different winemaking processes is generally considered to be negative for the sensory characteristics of white and rosé wines. Wine racking is a critical point of O2 uptake, as the large surface area of the wine exposed during this operation and the inability to maintain an effective inert gas blanket over it.

The objective was to study O2 uptake during the racking of a model wine without using inert gases and to compare it with the purging of the destination tank with different inert gases. In addition, inert gases were also used to protect the wine in the racking tank by blanketing the wine. Finally, a full-scale inerting study was carried out in a commercial winery during the racking of a white wine to evaluate the effectiveness of the use of different inert gases. Tank ullage space oxygen (HSO) and wine dissolved oxygen (DO) were monitored in different points during the wine racking.

Purging an empty tank with different inert gases was effective being the CO2:Ar (20:80) mixture clearly the most effective, requiring less gas volume to displace O2. The opposite result was found with N2 because it worked in dilution mode. Although from an economic viewpoint, the most recommendable gas was CO2.

The level of protection of the racked wine and the headspace over the racked wine in the empty destination tank differed depending on the gas used and the thickness (% of the tank volume) of the blanket formed with each gas. Based on the results obtained, purging with 25% of the empty tank volume of each inert gas is recommended to protect racked wine in a good cost-benefit way. To keep the headspace of the racking tank inert, blanketing with 50% of tank volume of Ar, CO2 or the mixture of both were sufficient. Applying different volumes of gas had little effect on the DO of the wine at the tank outlet.

Acknowledgements: This research has been funded by ITACyL through a collaboration agreement with the University of Valladolid and the Fundación del Parque Científico de la Universidad de Valladolid. This project has received funding from AEI and Ministry of Science and Innovation MICINN (RTC2019-007319-2 Oxiprestop Project). The authors would like to tank Carburos Metálicos (Air Products group) and IVG Colbachini S.p.A for their material Support.

DOI:

Publication date: October 13, 2023

Issue: ICGWS 2023

Type: Poster

Authors

Ignacio Nevares*, Rubén del Barrio Galán, Elena Pérez-Cardo, María Asensio-Cuadrado, Ana Martínez-Gil, Luis Miguel Cárcel, Alberto Gómez, Sonia Villanueva, Julio A. Pinto Solano, Carlos Moro González, and Maria del Alamo-Sanza

Grupo UVaMOX-Universidad de Valladolid. Avda. Madrid 50. 34001 Palencia, Spain

Contact the author*

Keywords

inert gases, racking wine, blanketing, oxygen, purging

Tags

2ICGWS | ICGWS | ICGWS 2023 | IVES Conference Series

Citation

Related articles…

Symbiotic microorganisms application in vineyards: impacts on grapevine performance and microbiome

Microorganism-based inoculants have been suggested as a viable solution to mitigate the adverse effects of climate change on viticulture. However, the actual effectiveness of these inoculants when applied under field conditions remains a challenge, and their effects on the existing soil microbiota are still uncertain. This study investigates the impact of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi inoculation on grapevine performance and microbiome. The study was conducted in a vineyard of Callet cultivar in Binissalem, Mallorca, Spain. Two different treatments were applied: control and inoculation with commercial mycorrhizae complex of Rhizoglomus irregulare applied to plants through irrigation.

The exploitation of Croatian grapevine genetic resources for the breeding of new resistant cultivars 

Croatian viticulture is mainly based on native grapevine varieties susceptible to various diseases and pests, which leads to unsustainable use of large amounts of pesticides. The sustainable development of viticulture in the future will only be possible by increasing the resistance of the grapevine through the development of new resistant varieties. Breeding programs have been launched in the leading wine-growing countries to develop resistant varieties possessing high-quality levels. Native cultivars from Croatia are not included in the breeding programs of other countries.

The potential of some native varieties of Argentina for the production of sparkling wines. Effect of lees contact time 

Grapevine varieties from South-America, commonly known as criollas, originated because of the natural crossbreeding of grapevine varieties brought by the Spaniards. The objective of this work was to evaluate the potential of some varieties to produce sparkling wines considering the effect of lees contact time. The following varieties were used: Moscatel Rosado, Criolla Chica, Pedro Gimenez, Blanca Oval, Canelón, and the European variety Chardonnay (control), planted in the ampelographic collection of EEA Mendoza INTA (Argentina). Pilot-scale vinifications were carried out to obtain the base wines, in 20 L glass containers. The second fermentation was performed through the traditional method.

Late winter pruning induces a maturity delay under temperature-increased conditions in cv. Merlot from Chile

Chile is considered vulnerable to climate change; and these phenomena affect several mechanisms in the grape physiology and quality. The global temperature increase affects sugar contents, organic acids, and phenolic compounds in grapes, producing an imbalance maturity. In this sense, an alternative to reduce the impact is to perform pruning after vine budburst, known as “Late Pruning” (LP).

Grapevine adaptation to drought and resistance to Neofusicoccum parvum, causal agent of Botryosphaeria dieback

The sustainability of viticulture in response to climate change has been addressed mainly considering agronomic impacts, such as water management and diseases, either separately or together.
In grapevines, there is strong evidence that different genotypes respond differently to biotic and abiotic stresses. A screening was conducted on various local cultivars in response to drought and Neofusicoum parvum infection aiming to evaluate their susceptibility to abiotic stress and resistance to fungal diseases.