The key role of vineyard parcel in modifying flavor compounds of Cabernet Sauvignon grapes

Wine lees are the second most important wine by-product in terms of quantity after grape stalk and marc. During aging on lees, it is well known that wine lees yield compounds that act as antioxydant. However the chemical nature of the compounds involved in this behavior (except polyphenols and glutathione) has not yet been totally elucidated. The scarce knowledge of wine lees composition and their potential exploitation make them a promising candidate to obtain new antioxidant products to be used in winemaking. In this study, an eco-sustainable approach to obtain lees extracts exhibiting antioxidant capacity is proposed. Such extracts could be used in a global enological strategy of sulfites level reduction.

ÂThe natural abundance of carbon stable isotopes has been reported to be related to water availability in grapevines quite widely. In the case of nitrogen, the natural abundance of its stable isotopes is mainly affected by the nature of the source of nitrogen (organic vs. inorganic) used by the plant, though the bibliography available for grapevine is very scarce.

Over the past two decades, climate change has contributed to an increase in sugar content in grape must, and consequently, in the ethanol levels of wines.

It is well known that free varietal thiols, in particular 3-mercaptohexanol (3MH) and 3-mercaptohexyl ace-tate (3MHA), are important constituents to the aroma of New Zealand Sauvignon blanc wines.

In California vineyards, irrigation is considered as one of the most important decisions growers will make. Recent research has revealed that decisions of when to begin irrigation and how much water to apply have considerable consequences for final grape quality and hence wine quality. However, it is unclear whether and to what extent the average winegrape grower uses objective data to begin irrigating or to determine the amount of water to apply.