Climate variability and organoleptic profiles of Pinot noir worldwide

Abstract

Wine typicity is revealed at various spatial scales, according to the variability of terroir components, which individual contribution change depending on the site. In this study, the impact of climate at global scale on the sensory profile of wine is examined.

Thirty one Pinot noir wines produced in 16 winegrowing regions in Europe (Germany, France and Switzerland), North America (USA), South America (Chile) and Oceania (Australia and New Zealand) were selected. A blind testing was performed on the wines by 14 judges; among which 9 were considered sufficiently repeatable (criteria evaluated from the sensory analysis results of two identical wines). Wines were described by 26 visual, olfactory, gustatory and global attributes, rated from 1 to 5 by the judges. These organoleptic attributes were compared to several agroclimatic indices, extracted from the WorldClim (1950-2000) data base at 1 km resolution (30arc sec.).

A wide diversity of organoleptic profiles was found about the wines tasted, between and within the producing areas. Significant correlations were found between most of the gustatory and agroclimatic indices. Hydric indicators seem to control most of wine sensory characteristics. The dryness index is significantly correlated with the following sensory descriptors: ripe fruit, acidity, sweetness, astringency, bitterness, harmony and hedonistic quality. Thermal indices, such as the Huglin heliothermic index or the heat stress index, do not discriminate wines, which suggest an unexpected apparent plasticity of Pinot to climate conditions. Several factors among which cropping and enological techniques, compensate, probably in a strong way, climate variability between and within the climate regions.