Soil Temperature and Climate Change: Implications for Mediterranean Vineyards 

A healthy and dynamic agricultural sector is an important foundation of rural development, generating strong bonds to other economic sectors.

Although some wine production processes still rely on post-production evaluation and off-site laboratory analysis, the new winemaking industry is aware of a need for a better knowledge of the process to improve the properties of the final product. Thus, more and more wineries are interested in incorporating quality-by-design (QbD) strategies instead of postproduction testing because of the possibility to early detect deviations in fermentation or any other wine process. This would allow to detect unwanted situations and eventually to ‘readjust’ the process, thus minimizing rejects.

Grape pomace is the main byproduct generated during wine production and is primarily composed of skins and seeds, which are obtained after the pressing stage [1]. This byproduct retains a significant amount of nutrients, such as fiber, phenolic compounds, unsaturated fatty acids, vitamins, and minerals.

Increasing drought is the most important impact of the ongoing climate change in the Mediterranean Basin, and it is predicted to result in productivity decreases and changes in grape quality.

Fungus-Resistant Grape (FRG) varieties represent a promising approach to address the challenges of climate change and sustainability in viticulture.