Fertilization with Seaweed (Laminaria japonica) on the characteristics of the bunch and the quality of the grape must of ‘Cabernet Sauvignon’

 The manipulation of the genetic basis controlling grapevine adaptation and phenotypic plasticity can be performed either by classical genetics or biotechnologies.

Mouthfeel is an important quality parameter for Chardonnay wines, particularly those aged in oak. While research on mouthfeel has traditionally focused on the impact of non-aromatic compounds, the role of aroma compounds has largely been over looked. However, in wine as well as other food interactions between retronasal aroma and mouthfeel have been noted. The goal of this research was to investigate the impact of wine aroma on the perception of mouthfeel. Because of the importance of oak aging in the development of Chardonnay mouthfeel, the impact of oak aromas on perceived mouthfeel was explored. Aroma compounds associated with oak (ethyl palmitate, eugenol, furfural, isoeugenol, syringaldehyde, vanillin and whiskey lactone) were added to two different Chardonnay wines; one with no oak influence and one fermented in neutral oak. Low and high concentrations of the compounds were added based on concentrations typically found in barrel aged Chardonnay wine.

In 2010, the OIV adopted a resolution that defines ‘terroir’. The OIV definition understands terroir as the result of the interactions between the physical specificities of a space and human labor, with an emphasis on the subsequently produced collective knowledge (OIV-VITI 333-2010); by doing so, it alludes to the social and cultural dimensions of terroir.

Grape volatile compounds are mainly responsible for wine aroma, so it is important to know the va-rietal aromatic composition throughout ripening process. Currently, there are no tools that allow mea-suring the aromatic composition of grapes, in intact berries and periodically, throughout ripening, in the vineyard or in the winery. For this reason, this work evaluated the use of near infrared spectroscopy (NIR) to estimate the aromatic composition and total soluble solids (TSS) of Tempranillo Blanco berries during ripening. For this purpose, NIR spectra (1100-2100 nm) were acquired from 240 samples of in-tact berries, collected at different dates, from veraison to overripening.

Nitrogen fertilisation of grapevines is known to influence not only plant development and production yield, but also yeast assimilable nitrogen (YAN). This parameter is related to the growth of yeast