Terroir 2020 banner
IVES 9 IVES Conference Series 9 Global warming effects on grape growing climate zones within the Rioja Appllation (DOCa Rioja) in north Spain

Global warming effects on grape growing climate zones within the Rioja Appllation (DOCa Rioja) in north Spain

Abstract

Aims: The aims of this work were (1) to assess the changes in some of the main bioclimatic indices used for climate viticultural zoning within the Rioja Appellation area in the north of Spain between 1950-2014 (60 years), and (2) to carry out a comprehensive sociological evaluation among grapegrowers and winemakers of this region, to better understand the impact of climate change on their activity, their degree of concern about it and the potential adaptation measures they would be willing to adopt to cope with it in future years.

Methods and Results: For the climatic evaluation, two high-resolution (5Km x 5Km) daily gridded temperature and precipitation datasets covering the years between 1950-2014 were used. Following the criterium of the World Meteorological Organization, two subperiods of 30 years were created. For the Winkler index (WI), the Huglin index (HI), the Growing Season average Temperature (GST) and the Growing Season Precipitation (GSP), the median for each subperiod was compared (at p<0.01 or p<0.05) using the Wilcolxon-Mann-Whitney test. A significant increase between 0.7 and 1.1°C of GST was found for most of the region between the two subperiods. This was reflected in changes in the WI and HI zoning within the region, with increased and predominant area in zones II and III for WI and H+1 and H-1 for HI. In terms of GSP, no significant changes were detected, but larger areas with GSP between 160 and 200 mm H2O were observed. Regarding the sociological approach, 481 on-site surveys with 29 different questions were conducted among grapegrowers, winemakers, consultants and other wine-related stakeholders. Some of the main findings include that 64.3% of respondents have experienced some negative impact, including economical effects. The main actions taken in the last years to cope with climate change were installation of irrigation, increase of crop insurance adoption against hail and frost, and adaptation to new pests and diseases.

Conclusions: 

Global warming was significantly detected in a 60 year period in the Rioja Appellation area, which caused changes in the grapegrowing climate zoning within the region. At social level, climate change was highly perceived by viticulturists and winemakers, which had started to adopt different actions to cope with increased temperatures and strong climate events. 

Significance and Impact of the Study: This work provides a unique, high-resolution diagnosis about climate change and viticultural zoning displacement within the Rioja Appellation, which is one of the top wine regions worldwide. Likewise, the sociological study is the first one carried out in this area, and offers valuable information for policy makers to drive mitigation and adaptation policies towards global warming in future years.

DOI:

Publication date: March 17, 2021

Issue: Terroir 2020

Type: Video

Authors

Maria P. Diago1,2*, Lya Arpón1,2, Sergio Andrés-Cabello3, Carmen Bengoechea4

1Departamento de Agricultura y Alimentación. Universidad de La Rioja, Madre de Dios, 53. 26006. Logroño. La Rioja, Spain
2Instituto de Ciencias de la Vid y del Vino (Universidad de La Rioja, CSIC, Gobierno de La Rioja) Finca La Grajera, Ctra. de Burgos Km 6. 26007 Logroño, La Rioja, Spain
3Departamento de Ciencias Humanas. Universidad de La Rioja. Luis de Ulloa, 2, 26004, Logroño. La Rioja, Spain 
4Soluciones Turísticas. Avda. de la Sierra, 29, 4º A, 26007, Logroño, La Rioja, Spain

Contact the author

Keywords

Climate change, Rioja, bioclimatic indices, viticultural zoning

Tags

IVES Conference Series | Terroir 2020

Citation

Related articles…

Plant fibers in comparison with other fining agents for the re-duction of pesticide residues and the effect on the volitile profile of Austrian white and red wines.

Pesticide residues in Austrian wines have so far been poorly documented. In 250 wines, 33 grape musts and 45 musts in fermentation, no limit values were exceeded, but in some cases high lev-els (>0.100 mg/l) of single residues were found, meaning that a reduction of these levels before bottling could make sense. In the course of this study, a white and a red wine were spiked with a mix of 23 pesticide residues from the group of fungicides (including botryticides), herbicides and insecticides. The influence of the following treatments on residue concentrations and volatile profiles were investigated: two activated charcoal products, a bentonite clay, two commer-cial mixed fining agents made of bentonite and charcoal, two yeast cell wall products, and a plant fiber-based novel filter additive. The results of this study show that all the agents tested reduced both residues and aromavolatile compounds in wine, with activated charcoal having the strongest effect and bentonite the weakest. The mixed agents and yeast wall products showed less aroma losses than charcoal products, but also lower residue reduction. Plant fibers showed good reduction of pesticides with moderate aroma damage, but these results need to be con-firmed under practical conditions.

Variabilité spatiale du gel printanier dans le vignoble champenois : application au zonage climatique

In the Champagne vineyards, spring frosts are the cause of significant variations in the volume of the harvest which are very penalizing for the trade. This variability is reflected both in time (years without frost alternating with years with severe frosts) and in space. Certain sectors of the vineyard are in fact statistically more susceptible to frost than others, but each year no municipality can consider itself immune to this climatic accident. The objective of the study is precisely to analyze the spatial distribution of frost and to determine its main mechanisms, linked to the topography of the hillsides, their orientation but also to regional meteorological variables.

South American Creole grapevines: new varieties identified in the Caravelí Valley (Peru) and their aromatic profile

The valley of Caravelí (Peru) received the first vine plants in colonial times and the tradition of cultivation is maintained thanks to its terroir and artisanal techniques.

Application of plant growth regulators on Vitis vinifera L var. Mouchtaro affect berry quality characteristics & associated microbial communities

The phenolic profile of the red grapevine varieties berries is a key quality factor and several techniques have been applied to improve it (Perez-Lamela et al., 2007; Singh SK and Sharma, 2010). The last decade the application of resistance elicitors and phytohormones is an innovative viticultural technique (Paladines-Quezada et al., 2021; Alenazi et al., 2019).In the present study, leaves and berries of a Greek red indigenous variety (Mouhtaro) sprayed with two elicitors, benzothiadiazole and chitosan and a plant hormone abscisic acid, during veraison.

Vineyard Landscape in Vale dos Vinhedos: Pressure and Protection

The region with Origin Indication Vale dos Vinhedos (IPVV) is located in the cities of Bento Gonçalves, Garibaldi and Monte Belo do Sul. It was established in November 2002, through an act of Instituto Nacional de Propriedade Industrial, according to Resolução INPI Nº. 75, of 2000, and Law Nº. 9.279 of 1996. The changes on the grape growing and wine making in the last 15 years, with the expansion of grapevines Vitis viníferas cultivation, the installation of several modern family wine companies, making wine with competitive quality, among other aspects, have enabled the implementation of concepts of Geographical Indications.