Exploring diversity of grapevine responses to Flavescence dorée infection

When talking about wine, terroirs are never too far. The National Institute of Apellation d’Origine (INAO) defines it as a system inside of which interact a group of human factors, an agricultural production and a physical environment.

Superior Seedless is a table grape cultivar mainly produced in San Juan.

Anthocyanins and phenolic compounds play a crucial role in winemaking, contributing to the profile, flavor, color, texture, and stability of wine. Grape clusters, specifically Vitis vinifera L. cv. Grenache, were handpicked from a commercial vineyard sited in Tudelilla, La Rioja, Spain (42°18′ 52.26″, Long. -2°7′ 59.15″, Alt. 582 m) on five distinct dates from veraison to harvest during the 2015 season. Non-contact spectral measurements were conducted on intact grape berries using a VIS-NIR spectrometer operating in the 570 – 1000 nm spectral range under controlled laboratory conditions, positioned at a distance of 25 cm from the berries. The quantification of 16 anthocyanins and phenols in 120 grape clusters was performed using HPLC, established as the reference method for validating the spectral tool.

Alcoholic fermentation using no Saccharomyces wine is an effective means of modulating wine aroma. This study investigated the impact of coinoculating Torulaspora delbruecki with two Saccharomyces cerevisiae commercial yeast (QA23, Lallemand; Red Fruit, Sepsa-Enartis) on enological quality parameters, volatile composition and sensory analysis. The following assays were performed on Tempranillo variety: Saccharomyces QA23 (CTQA), Saccharomyces Red Fruit (CTRF), coinoculated T. delbrueckii + S.cerevisiae QA23 (CIQA) and coinoculated T. delbrueckii + S.cerevisiae (CIRF).

The analysis of the distribution of natural plant populations allows an ecological characterization of cultivated environments in thermal, water and trophic terms; it guides the choice or selection of plants (or grape varieties) to cultivate (Astruc et al ., 1984, 1987; Delpoux, 1971; Jacquinet and Astruc, 1979). This approach has given good results in areas where the topography is the determining factor in the ecological differentiation of the terroirs.