Characterization of the adaptive mechanisms of grapevine rootstocks to iron deficiency induced by lime stress

Nebbiolo (Vitis vinifera L.) is one of the most important wine red cultivar of North-west Italy. A better understanding of the complex relations among grape aromatic and phenolic maturity and environmental factors may strongly contribute to the improvement of the quality of Nebbiolo wines.

Context and purpose of the study. The vine nursery sector is undergoing a transformation to meet growing environmental and sanitary demands.

Terroir method has been used for assessment of growing site in the world for years. In Slovakia actually regionalisation is used as the similar method which does not cover all the elements of wine quality evaluation however.

The multi-annual study of the International Genetic Bank of the Grape Vine has shown that red varieties are enough, but the red varieties that produce high-quality red wine are minimal.

During wine aging, several complex phenomena of gas transfer take place in barrels due to the wine/oak contact. The efficiency of this gas transfer varies according to oak wood’s intrinsic physical properties. This research aims to better understand oxygen transfer phenomena through dry oak staves and especially through stave gaps, in order to reevaluate the importance of barrel-making on a barrel’s supply of oxygen. Experimentation was based on the development of an innovative permeameter of laboratory scale, for which the principal operating conditions concerning applied pressure, the choice of liquid phase/gas phase, and the grain type of oak are taken into account and investigated. With a specially developed tightening system, the existing pressure at stave gaps in a barrel could be reproduced on a laboratory scale in order to estimate its influence on oxygen transfer efficiency.