Non-Saccharomyces yeast nitrogen consumption and metabolite production during wine fermentation

The wine quality is a characteristic that is both difficult to define and communicate, because the quality attributes can be divided into intrinsic (objective, such as alcohol degree, acidity

Traditional viticulture areas have experienced in the last decades an intensification of field practices, linked to an increased use of fertilisers and phytosanitary products, and to a more intensive mechanization and uniformization of the landscape. This change in management has sometimes led to higher rates of soil erosion andloss of soil structure, fertility decline, groundwater contamination, and to an increased pressure of pests and diseases. Additionally, intensification usually leads to a simplification of landscapes, of particular concern in prestigious wine grape regions where the economical revenue encourages the conversion of land use from natural habitats to high value wine grape production. To revert this trend, it is necessary that growers implement actions that promote biodiversity in their vineyards. The aim of this study is to assess the impact of the implementation of cover crops, vegetational corridors, dry stone walls and vineyard biodiversity hotspots estimated through the study of arthropods. The work has been carried out in four vineyards in Rioja Alavesa belonging to Ostatu winery, where these infrastructures were implemented in 2020. The presence and diversity of arthropods was studied by capturing them at different times in the season and at different distances from the infrastructure using pit-fall traps in the soil and yellow, white and blue chromatic traps at the canopy level. This is a preliminary study in which all adult insects were sorted to the taxonomic level of order and Coleoptera were classified to morphospecies. The results obtained show that there is a relationship between the basic characteristics of the vineyard and the arthropods captured, with a positive effect, although also dependent on the vineyard, of the presence of infrastructure.

The accession Criolla Chica Nº2 (CCN2) is catalogued as a floral mutation of cultivar Criolla Chica (synonym for cv. Listán Prieto). Contrary to what is observed in hermaphrodite-cultivated varieties like Criolla Chica, CCN2 exhibits a prevalence of masculinized flowers. Aiming to study the incidence and phenotypical implications of this mutation, CCN2 plants were deeply studied using Criolla Chica ‘Ballista’ (CCBA) as control plants. For each CCN2 plant, two inflorescences per shoot were sampled and segmented into proximal, mid and distal positions, relative to the pedicel. Flowers were observed through magnifying lens and classified according to OIV151 descriptor.

La conoscenza dell’interazione genotipo x ambiente e pertanto della caratterizzazione territoriale è di prioritaria importanza nella valutazione dei siti. Grazie alla combinazione di dati GIS

Rotundone is the main aroma compound responsible for peppery notes in red wine. This positive and very potent molecule has an odor threshold of 8 ng/L in water and 16 ng/L in red wine. It has been detected in several grape varieties with some of the highest concentrations recorded in Syrah, Duras, Tardif and Noiret, an interspecific hybrid grown in the North-East of the USA. If several winemaking practices have been identified to lower rotundone in wine, up to date, no enological solution has proved its efficiency to maximize it. This means that efforts to produce high rotundone wines must be undertaken in vineyards. This work provides practical ways that can be used by winegrowers to modulate rotundone levels in their wines.