GiESCO 2019 banner
IVES 9 IVES Conference Series 9 GiESCO 9 GiESCO 2019 9 Late leaf removal does not consistently delay ripeningin semillon in Australia

Late leaf removal does not consistently delay ripeningin semillon in Australia

Abstract

Context and purpose of the study ‐ An advancement of grapevine phenological development has been observed worldwide in the last two decades. In South Australia this phenomenon is even more accentuated since grapevine is often grown in a hot climate. The main consequences are earlier harvests at higher sugar levels which also result in more alcoholic wines. These are deemed undesirable for the Australian wine industry with consumer preferences shifting towards lower alcohol wines. Vineyard practices can be implemented to control and delay ripening. Amongst them, apical late leaf removal has been successfully applied in Europe to delay ripening by up to two weeks in Sangiovese, Aglianico and Riesling. In those studies, no negative effects were observed on grape colour, phenolics and on the carbohydrate storage capacity of the vines. To date, this technique has not been studied in Australia. In this study late leaf removal, apical to the bunch zone was applied to the variety Semillon for four seasons and compared to an untreated control.

Material and methods ‐ The study was carried out for four consecutive seasons starting in 2015 in the variety Semillon at the Waite Campus, University of Adelaide, Australia. Yield, yield components and berry chemistry (total soluble solids, titratable acidity, pH and total phenolics) were all assessed during the study.


Results
‐ Results showed that despite the removal of up to 30% of the vine’s canopy, the technique was effective in delaying ripening only in one of the four seasons. No differences were observed in yield components and berry and wine chemistry between the treated and untreated vines. These results suggest that the technique might not be a feasible strategy to delay ripening in Semillon grown in a hot climate in Australia.

DOI:

Publication date: June 19, 2020

Issue: GIESCO 2019

Type: Article

Authors

Roberta DE BEI (1), Xiaoyi WANG (1), Lukas PAPAGIANNIS (1), Massimiliano COCCO (1,3), Patrick O’BRIEN (1), Marco ZITO (1,4), Jingyun OUYANG (1), Sigfredo FUENTES (5), Matthew GILLIHAM (1,2), Steve TYERMAN (1,2) and Cassandra COLLINS (1)

(1) The University of Adelaide, School of Agriculture, Food and Wine, Waite Research Institute, PMB 1 Glen Osmond, 5064, South Australia. Australia
(2) ARC Centre of Excellence in Plant Energy Biology, Waite Research Institute, PMB 1 Glen Osmond, 5064, South Australia, Australia
(3) The University of Sassari, Department of Agriculture, Viale Italia 39, 07100, Sassari, Italy
(4) Istituto di Scienze della Vita, Sant’Anna School of Advanced Studies, Piazza dei Martiri della Libertà 33, 56127 Pisa, Italy
(5) The University of Melbourne, Faculty of Veterinary and Agricultural Sciences. Parkville, 3010. Victoria, Australia

Contact the author

Keywords

Leaf removal, delayed ripening, canopy management, leaf area, Semillon

Tags

GiESCO 2019 | IVES Conference Series

Citation

Related articles…

Evaluation of shelf life of white wines in aluminium bottle: a modelling approach

Aluminum is a particularly interesting material for packaging because it is environmentally sustainable, lighter than standard glass bottles, and protective against light radiation [1].

Looking for a more efficient genotypes in water use. A key for a sustainable viticulture

Aim: Grapevine has traditionally been widely cultivated in drylands. However, in recent decades, a significant part of the viticulture all over the word and specifically in Mediterranean basin, is being irrigated. In recent years, due to climate change, among other reasons, the available natural water resources have been reduced substantially compromising the sustainability of viticulture, especially in the most arid areas

Update knowledge about the presence of condensed tannins in grapes and their contributions to astringency perception

Condensed tannin is a principle group of polyphenol compounds derived from grape, greatly contributing to the bioactivity and the sensory perception of wine. Condensed tannins present as a heterogeneous mixture in nature involving various degrees of both polymerization and galloylation. Even though multiple attempts focusing on fractionation of grape condensed tannins by solid-phase have been conducted over the past decades, few individual tannins have been purified and identified. Hence, our knowledge on grape and wine condensed tannin moleculars has to be limited at the several known monomeric, dimeric and trimeric proanthocyanidins

Unraveling the complexity of high-temperature tolerance by characterizing key players of heat stress response in grapevine

Grapevine (Vitis spp.) is greatly influenced by climatic conditions and its economic value is therefore directly linked to environmental factors. Among these factors, temperature plays a critical role in vine phenology and fruit composition. In such conditions, elucidating the mechanisms employed by the vine to cope with heat waves becomes urgent. For the past few years, our research team has been producing molecular and metabolic data to highlight the molecular players involved in the response of the vine and the fruit to high temperatures [1]. Some of these temperature-sensitive genes are currently undergoing characterization using transgenesis approaches coupled or not with genome editing, taking advantage of the Microvine genotype [2].

Historical reconquest of hillslopes by the “Vins des Abymes” after the collapse of Mont Granier in 1248 (Savoie, France)

The vineyards extending between the hillslopes of ‘Apremont’ and ‘Les Marches’ that dominate the valley of Chambéry (Savoie, French Alps) define the terroir of the ‘Vins des Abymes’.