REVINE project : regenerative agricultural approaches to improve ecosystem services in Mediterranean vineyards

Grappa is the most important italian spirit and its production includes elements of history, tradition, and culture of the transalpine country. In accordance with EU laws, grappa is obtained from the fermentation and distillation of the pomace, eventually added with fermentation lees and water. Grappa is one of the richest fruit distillates in volatile compounds that confer to the product its characteristic flagrance. The aroma is largely due to the volatile compounds present in the raw materials, in particular alcohols, esters and carbonyl compounds formed during the alcoholic fermentation, but also to grape aromas such as terpenols and norisoprenoids, that confers grappa the distinctive floral scents.

Aim: Many processes or reactions that occur in plants involved isotopic discrimination. Water availability, for example, affects the isotopic ratio of carbon (δ13C) and oxygen (δ18O). In viticulture, δ13C is used in experiments related to water relations and irrigation in vineyards. δ18O is used much less but it could be a good complement to δ13C. The aim of this study was to generate knowledge on how these isotopic ratios, measured in musts, could help to better understand the water behavior of grape varieties. 

According to the Kyoto Protocol objectives, it’s necessary to identify alternative carbon dioxide sinks, and vineyard soils could be a significant opportunity.

Since the approval in 2019 of the use of high-power ultrasound (US) in winemaking to support extractive processes from grape to must, the study of this technology in red winemaking has increased significantly, with laboratory and semi-industrial scale studies.

Soil management plays a key role in climate change adaptation.