REDWINE project: use of Chlorella vulgaris to prevent biotic and abiotic stress in Palmela’s region, Portugal, vineyards

Terroirs represent a heritage that must be studied and managed with appropriate methods; recourse to agronomic and oenological sciences alone is necessary, but is in no way sufficient without the contribution of the humanities.

Nearly one third of the Herault vineyard (south of France) is planted on soils very sensitive to water runoff and erosion

The study was carried out in 2006 with Merlot grapes from vines grown using the trellis system, where four treatments were compared with different levels of water stress.

Aims: In previous work, five indigenous Pichia kluyveri strains, GS1-1, FS-2-7, HS-2-1, C730 and C732, were isolated and selected from spontaneous fermented wines from Ningxia and Gansu. The aims of this study were to 1) evaluate resistance of these strains to environmental stressors that may restrict their growth and the progress of alcoholic fermentation; 2) Investigate their fermentation dynamics; 3) Characterise aroma profiles of Cabernet Sauvignon wines made from mixed cultures of P. kluyveri and Saccharomyces cerevisiae.

The Grenache Noir grape variety, due to its originality and its representativeness, contributes very directly to the quality and typicality of the wines of the Rhône Valley. It is generally appreciated for its varied aromatic palette and for the roundness and suppleness it gives to wines. Since 1995, the Rhodanien Institute has set up a network of reference plots representative of the different types of terroir present in the southern zone of the Côtes du Rhône Appellation (TRUC, 1997; VAUDOUR et al, 1996 ) . Publications on the aromatic composition of grapes and wines are very abundant, but only a few articles have appeared on the Grenache grape variety PAUMES et al., 1986).