GiESCO 2019 banner
IVES 9 IVES Conference Series 9 GiESCO 9 Georgian vitis germplasm: conservation, research and usage

Georgian vitis germplasm: conservation, research and usage

Abstract

Context and purpose of the study – Grapevine Vitis vinifera L. is a leader perennial crops for the Republic of Georgia, the South Caucasus. This is a region where the first wine making practice was initiated 8.000 years ago (McGovern et al. 2017) and a spot of grape domestication. The country of Georgia holds 525 local and more than 60 breeding varieties – they are preserved in 9 field collections inside the country.The list of recommended wine cultivars contains 34 names, including 27 old autochthonous varieties and covering 94% of the country’s vineyards. The wild grapevine Vitis silvestris Gmel. is a typical representative of the country’s flora. Importance of this genetic resources is essential for selection and breeding dew to new challenges such as climate change, diseases, environmental concerns and market demands. The present study was organized for multidisciplinary research of identification, collection, characterization and conservation for Georgian grapevine germplasm diversity including autochthonous varieties and wild grapevines with the aim to improve local viticulture and wine making.

Material and methods – The research fields of this study contains ampelography, ampelometry, phenology, cytology, ripening profiles, chemo-taxonomy, DNA fingerprinting and screening for disease. Modern techniques of ampelography based on the OIV descriptors, methodology of the European projects GrapeGen06 and COST FA1003, and molecular genetics (SSR, SNPs) were used to investigate Georgian autochthonous varieties from 5 collections (Georgia, Italy, France) and wild grape from the territory of Georgia. This research is in progress since 2003.

Results – This riches of genetic resources of Georgian grapes and assortment of its wines attracts the international interest because of its diversity. As a result several international (Bioversity International, GrapeGen06, COST FA1003) and national projects have run in the last decade, with Georgia as leader or regional coordinator – the latest being the ongoing “Research Project for the Study of Georgian Grapes and Wine Culture” (National Wine Agency) and the “Wild grapevine of Georgia: Research and Preservation” (Shota Rustaveli National Science Foundation). Being multidisciplinary these projects did grate effort for studding of wide aspects of Georgian grapes and wine, stimulated increasing of knowledge about them and promoting Georgian wines on the World market. As a result of these study large number of the local genetic resources have been certified using ampelography (morphology, phenology, anthocyanins), screening for resistances of downy mildew agent Plasmopara viticola, molecular fingerprinting, wine characteristics, made them available in the Vitis International Variety Catalogue and European Vitis database. The inventory of wild grape was carried out by organization of expeditions, more than 250 wild populations of Vitis silvestris Gmel.have been discovered and a field collection were established in 2014. Several books and articles dedicated to local varieties and wild grapevine were published in the last decade. But in the same time more efforts are needed to continue this work using new DNA technologies as well as ampelography technique in cooperation with other institutions.

DOI:

Publication date: March 11, 2024

Issue: GiESCO 2019

Type: Poster

Authors

David MAGHRADZE1*, Osvaldo FAILLA2, Roberto BACILIERI3, Gabriella DE LORENZIS 2Piero Attilio BIANCO2, Silvia TOFFOLATTI2, Rafael OCETE RUBIO4

1 Georgian Technical University (GTU), Tbilisi, Georgia
2 Department of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences, University of Milan, Italy
3 INRA, Montpellier SupAgro, Génétique de la Vigne, Montpellier, France
4 Laboratorio  de Entomologia Aplicada, Universidad de Sevilla, Spain

Contact the author

Keywords

Georgia, Grapevine, genetic resources, characterization, ampelography, DNA techniques

Tags

GiESCO | GiESCO 2019 | IVES Conference Series

Citation

Related articles…

Microwave-assisted maceration and stems addition in Bonarda grapes: effects on wine chemical composition and sensory properties over two vintages

AIM: Bonarda, the second red grape variety in Argentina, produces high yields per hectare generating, in several cases, wines with low levels of quality compounds.

Proteomic and activity characterization of exocellular laccases from three Botrytis cinerea strains

Botrytis cinerea is a fungus that causes common infection in grapes and other fruits. In winemaking, its presence can be both considered desirable in the case of noble rot infection or undesirable when grey rot is developed. This fungus produces an extracellular enzyme known as laccase which is able to cause oxidation of phenolic compounds present in must and wine, causing most of the times a decrease in its quality and problems during the winemaking process [1]. Material and methods: Three B. cinerea strains (B0510, VA612 and RM344) were selected and grown in a liquid medium adapted from one previously described [2]. The enzyme was isolated by tangential ultrafiltration of the culture medium using a QuixStand system equipped with a 30 KDa filtration membrane.

Fleurtai, Soreli and Tocai Friulano: perspectives for quality integration of wine together with protection of the DOCG Lison Classico appellation

In modern viticulture, sustainability must be considered not only into the winery, but in the vineyard as well, being that with the most attentive interventions in order to protect the environment. In this context, the new “fungi resistant” varieties represent a valid option for reducing the negative environmental impact of agrochemicals used in viticulture, including those ones used in organic farming (given the copper accumulation into soils). Several application studies have demonstrated the enological validity of many resistant varieties, both in price and as a blend. Also, under the production point of view, the feasibility and economical sustainability of the new resistant varieties was verified. The aim of this work was to deepen the knowledge on the organoleptic characteristics of wines obtained from the Fleurtai and Soreli varieties and to compare them with the wine obtained from Tocai Friulano, the mother variety in the area destined for the production of the Lison Classico DOCG appellation. The purpose of the work is then to verify the possibility of introducing resistant varieties into the DOCG while maintaining the wine name of the appellation linked to the territory.

The influence of native flora on Argentine white terroir cv. Torrontes Riojano

The main objective of this paper is to establish considerable differences between wines from three wine areas or terroir, made with cv Torrontes Riojano.

Electrochemical diversity of italian white wines

Analysis of phenolic compounds typically involve spectrophotometric methods as well as liquid chromatography combined with DAD, fluorimetric, or MS detection. However, the complexity of wine phenolic composition generated, in recent years, attention towards other analytical approaches, including those allowing rapid and inexpensive operations. Voltametric AIM Oxidation of white wine phenolics occurs at different stages during winemaking and storage and can have important implications for wine sensory quality. Phenolic compounds, in particular those with a ortho-diphenol moiety, are main target of oxidation in wine. Strategies for the methods are particularly suited for the analysis of oxidizable compounds such as phenolics. The redox-active species can be oxidized and reduced at the electrode, therefore, applications of electrochemistry have been developed both to quantify such species, and to probe wine maturation processes.3 The project on the diversity of Italian wines aims at collecting and analysing large-scale compositional dataset related to Italian white wines.