Terroir 2012 banner
IVES 9 IVES Conference Series 9 Vine nitrogen status and the terroir effect: a study on cv. Doral in the Vaud vineyard (Switzerland)

Vine nitrogen status and the terroir effect: a study on cv. Doral in the Vaud vineyard (Switzerland)

Abstract

A 3-year study was conducted in the Vaud vineyard (Switzerland) to evaluate the effects of « terroir » on the ecophysiology and fruit compostion of Vitis vinifera L. cv. Doral and the characteristics of the wine made therefrom. The impact of soil on the vine-fruit-wine continuum was evaluated at 13 locations in the Vaud during the 2007-2009 seasons. Except for soil, the vineyards presented almost identical climatic characteristics and used similar cultivation techniques. The aim of this chapter was to assess whether soil might be a major environmental factor explaining the terroir effect through its effect on vine nitrogen status. We monitored the nitrogen status of the vines by measuring yeast assimilable nitrogen (YAN) in the must. The soil modulated vine nitrogen status by its fertility and rooting depth. Low vine nitrogen status induced a highly-soluble solids content, low malic acid content and high pH in fruits, resulting in small berries and low vine vigour. Wines were produced in a standardised manner from each location; then, they were subjected to sensory and chemical evaluation. YAN in musts was the parameter that best explained the variation in sensory characteristics of the wine made from grapes from the different locations. Wines made from grapes with low YAN values had negative sensory characteristics such as astringency and low aroma complexity scores. Therefore, vine nitrogen status was a key parameter contributing to the terroir effect. Furthermore, this work provides evidence of how geopedology can influence vine nitrogen status, fruit composition and sensory attributes of wines.

DOI:

Publication date: October 1, 2020

Issue: Terroir 2012

Type: Article

Authors

Vivian ZUFFEREY, Jean-Sébastien REYNARD, Geneviève Clara NICOL, François MURISIER

Station de recherche Agroscope Changins-Wädenswil ACW, CH-1260 Nyon, Switzerland

Contact the author

Keywords

soil categories, rooting depth, leaf and must nitrogen status, wine characteristics

Tags

IVES Conference Series | Terroir 2012

Citation

Related articles…

Exploring intra-vineyard variability with sensor- and molecular-based approaches 

The application of remote and proximal sensing is a fast and efficient method to monitor grapevine vegetative and physiological parameters and is considered valuable to derive information on associated yield and quality traits in the vineyard. Further details can be obtained by the application of molecular analysis at the gene expression level aiming at elucidating how pathways controlling the formation of different grape quality traits are influenced by spatial variability. This work aims at evaluating intra-vineyard variability in grape composition at harvest and at comparing this with remotely sensed canopy vegetation data and molecular-based approaches.

Wine archeochemistry: a multiplatform analytical approach to chemically profile shipwreck wines

The Cape of Storms (also known as Cape of Good Hope) is renowned for harbouring a multitude of shipwrecks due to the inherent treacherous coastline and blistering storms.

Deciphering the color of rosé wines using polyphenol targeted metabolomics

The color of rosés wines is extremely diverse and a key element in their marketing. It is due to the presence of red anthocyanins extracted from grape skins and pigments formed from them and other wine constituents during wine-making.

Assessment of the optimal number of observations in the study of vineyard soil (Rigosol)

A study of soil pH on the experimental field resulted in a high variability of pH on a very small scale. This kind of heterogenity in soil pH have effects on growth of two grapevine varieties on rootstock Kober 5BB

Grape must quality and mesoclimatic variability in Fruška Gora wine-growing region, Serbia

The Fruška Gora mountain is a traditional wine-growing region in Serbia situated in the Pannonian Basin. Due to such a position, the vicinity of the Danube River and the presence of concave configuration, it is suitable for grape production. This paper provides analyses of spatial variations in meteorological parameters and grape juice quality within Fruška Gora wine region over three consecutive vintages (2018-2020). The examined period can be defined as warm with cool nights during September (AVG 18,9°C; GDD 1918°C; CI 12°CF) and with the presence of mesoclimatic variability. The East part of the study area was somewhat drier and hotter compared to other parts of the region. The analyses of grape must samples (190 in total) of five cultivars (Cabernet-Sauvignon, Merlot, Chardonnay, Sauvignon blanc and Grašac (Welschriesling)) commonly grown across the region (19 sites), were performed using Fourier Transform Infrared Technology (FTIR). Among all cultivars, Sauvignon blanc was harvested first in the East area (DOY=246±5, GDD at harvest=1552±74, 22.2±0.7 °Brix), while the latest harvest was recorded for Cabernet-Sauvignon in the West (DOY=283±5, GDD at harvest=1936±187, 23.4±1.0 °Brix ). Both the red and white cultivars had higher acidity and YAN in the grape must if the vines were grown in the North and East compared to South and West areas. According to PCA analysis, Grašac showed the lowest variation in grape must chemical composition. Thus, the results confirm that Grašac is the most stable cultivar in Fruška Gora. All monitored cultivars reached technological fruit ripeness by the end of the growing season. However, it was difficult to reach full ripeness of red cultivars, mostly beacuse of uncoupling of technolocical and phenolic ripeness. Thus, Cabernet-Sauvignon had higher variations in GDD sums at harvest compared to other cultivars, which probably increased variations in grape must quality.