PRECISE AND SUSTAINABLE OENOLOGY THROUGH THE OPTIMIZED USE OF AD- JUVANTS: A BENTONITE-APPLIED MODEL OF STUDY TO EXPLOIT

Inorganic phosphonates are known to effectively support the control of grapevine downy mildew in vi- ticulture. Their application helps the plant to induce an earlier and more effective pathogen defense. However, inorganic phosphonates have been banned in organic viticulture due to their classification as plant protection products since October 2013. Despite the ban, phosphonate has been recently detected in organic wines.

Grape (Vitis vinifera) is one of the world’s oldest agricultural fruit crops, grown for wine, table grape, raisin, and other products. One of the factors that can cause a reduction in the grape growing area is temperature rise due to climate change. Elevated temperature causes changes in grapevine phenology and fruit chemical composition. Previous studies showed that grape varieties respond differently to a temperature shift of 1.5°C; few varieties had difficulties in the fruit development or could not reach the desired Brix level.

The phenolic compounds of red wines represent a source of numerous benefits for human health, which is why they are a constant subject of scientific research. Winemaking in Serbia has a growing economic significance, with particularly autochthonous varieties included [1]. This research identifies and quantifies phenolic compounds of Serbian red varietal wines of Prokupac and Black Tamjanika varieties. Quantification of the level of phenolics has been conducted, including molecular tannins [(+)-catechin, (-)-epicatechin, procyanidin dimers B1, B2, B3, B4], molecular anthocyanins, and the mean degree of polymerization of tannins by HPLC by UV detection, total antioxidant capacity via spectrophotometric methods and chromatic characteristics via CIELAB.

The interest in indigenous non-Saccharomyces yeast for use in wine production has increased in recent years because they contribute to the complex character of the wine. The aim of this work was to investigate the fermentation products of ten indigenous strains selected from a collection of native yeasts established at the Institute for Adriatic Crops and Karst Reclamation in 2021, previously isolated from Croatian Maraština grapes, belonging to Hypopichia pseudoburtonii, Metschnikowia pulcherrima, Metschnikowia sinensis, Metschnikowia chrysoperlae, Lachancea thermotolerans, Pichia kluyveri, Hanseniaspora uvarum, Hanseniaspora guillermondii, Hanseniaspora pseudoguillermondii, and Starmerella apicola species, and compare it with commercial non-Saccharomyces and Saccharomyces strains.

Fruity notes play a key role in the consumer’s appreciation of Bordeaux red wines. If literature provides a lot of knowledge about the nature of volatile compounds involved in this fruity expression, the sensory phenomena involving these compounds in mixture still need to be explored. Considering previous sensory works about the impact of esters and some overripening compounds, the goal of this work was to study the implication of perceptual interactions involving red wine odorant compounds of diverse origins and described as potentially affecting fruity aromatic expression.