The Pampa and the vineyard: gaucho´s natural and symbolic aspects in the identity´s constitution of “Vinhos da Campanha”’s terroir – RS/Brasil

Most of the rootstocks used in viticulture today are partly resistant against grape phylloxera (Daktulosphaira vitifoliae Fitch) and host phylloxera on the root system without conspicuous negative impacts on fruit production).

In the context of LIFE project MIDMACC (LIFE18 CCA/ES/001099), several pilots have been installed in vineyards in mid mountain areas of Catalonia (NE Spain) to test well stablished agronomic practices to increase the adaptation of Mediterranean mid mountain to climate change. Soil water content (SWC) at three different depths (15, 30 and 45cm) was measured in continuum from August 2020. One pilot (WC) included a well-established green cover (GC), a new GC (NC) and a conventional soil management (CM, tilling+herbicides). NC presented an intermediate state between WC and CM, responding similarly to CM in autumn but quickly reaching similar SWC to WC, then following the same evolution till next spring, with CM presenting lower values along autumn and winter. Then vegetation activation decreased SWC in all plots, (much slower in CM, lacking GC). Sensibility to spring rains is again intermediate for NC, which joins SWC evolution of CM by the end of spring till next autumn. It is expected that NC will resemble WC more and more as its GC develops. In the pilot combining vine training (VSP vs Gobelet) and hillside management (slope vs terrace), no clear pattern could be related with these conditions. However, both terraces seem to be more sensitive to spring rains. A third pilot included new vineyards (7 and 1 year old). In the new vineyard (N), higher canopy development, a spontaneous green cover and row straw resulted in a slower SWC dynamic, not so sensitive to rains but conserving more soil water in spring and most of summer, even with presumably a higher water extraction by vines. In the newest vineyard (VN) the deepest sensor is still sensitive to rain events all over the year and SWC is always highest at this depth, revealing small water capture by vines.

Ultra-High Pressure Homogenization (UHPH) is an innovative, efficient and non-thermal technology that can be applied at different stages in winemaking in order to reduce or avoid the use of sulphites. During 2022 vintage, a batch of Xarel·lo must was processed by UHPH at 300 MPa with an inlet temperature (Ti) of 4 ºC. In order to verify the influence of the UHPH treatment in wine characteristics, alcoholic fermentations with this must (UHPH) were carried out and compared with a control batch (without SO2 addition (C)) and a sulphited batch, in which 60 mg/L of total SO2 (SO2) were added.

A wide range of olfactory descriptors ranging from fresh and jammy fruit notes to cooked and oxidized fruit notes could describe the fruity aroma of red wines [1]. The fruity character of a wine is mainly related to the grape variety selected, to the terroir and the vinification process applied for its conception. In white wines, some volatile compounds confer directly their aroma to the wine while the question of “key” compound is more complex in red wines. According to many studies performed over the past decades, some fruity ethyl esters are directly involved in the fruity perception of red wines while others, present at subthreshold concentrations, participate indirectly to the fruity expression via perceptive interactions [2].

Proanthocyanidins are important phenolic fraction for wine quality, contributing to astringency, bitterness and color. Their metabolism begins in the mouth and continues throughout the gastrointestinal tract; however, most of them are accumulated in the colon where are metabolized by the intestinal microbiota, giving rise to a whole series of phenolic acids that may have greater activity at physiological level than the precursors[1]. This study aimed to evaluate in vitro the bioaccessibility of proanthocyanidins in a red wine developed by Bodegas Pradorey, as well as to evaluate the potential effect of intestinal microbiota on polyphenols metabolism identifying and quantifying secondary metabolites.