Terroir 2020 banner
IVES 9 IVES Conference Series 9 Regionality in Australian Shiraz: Sensory profiles of wines from six regions and their associations with chemical, geographical and climatic elements

Regionality in Australian Shiraz: Sensory profiles of wines from six regions and their associations with chemical, geographical and climatic elements

Abstract

Aim: Regional characters relating to Shiraz in Australia are not well documented. This study aimed to characterize the sensory, chemical and climate profiles of wines from various Australian Shiraz producing regions. 

Methods and Results: Sets of wines (22 to 28) from six prominent Australian Shiraz producing regions were assessed by groups of regional winemakers using a rapid sensory method called Pivot© Profile (PP) to obtain biplots of their sensory characteristics. Three or four samples from each region were selected using Agglomerative Hierarchical Clustering (AHC) analysis of the PP data resulting in a subset of twenty-two wines, which were then assessed using sensory descriptive analysis. A comprehensive chemical profile was also undertaken, including monoterpenes, norisoprenoids, low molecular weight sulphur compounds, oak volatiles, esters, and non-volatile compounds. Seventeen season-specific climate indices were also complied for each sample. Multivariate analyses (Principal Component Analysis and Partial Least-Squares Regression) showed that wines with stalky/cooked vegetal sensory attributes had higher cinnamate esters and dimethylsulfide, relating to a later budbreak and harvest day; wines with higher monoterpenes were associated with floral aroma; higher solar radiation was linked to higher tannin and colour density values, norisoprenoid and phenylethyl acetate concentrations and an association with dark fruit/dried fruit and tannin/colour attributes. 

Conclusions:

Distinctive sensory and chemical fingerprints exist for the specific regions studied, and the climatic profiles were strongly associated with key compounds influencing sensory differences. 

Significance and Impact of Study: Relating multiple site- and season-specific climate measures to chemical composition and characteristic sensory attributes of regional Australian Shiraz wines can help grape growers, winemakers and wine marketers better understand and promote the effect of place on their wines. 

DOI:

Publication date: March 17, 2021

Issue: Terroir 2020

Type: Video

Authors

Wes Pearson1,2*, Leigh Schmidtke1, I. Leigh Francis2, Sijing Li1, Andrew Hall1,3, B. Thomas Carr1,4, John Blackman1

1National Wine and Grape Industry Centre, Charles Sturt University, School of Agricultural and Wine Science, Locked Bag 588, Wagga Wagga, NSW 2678, Australia
2The Australian Wine Research Institute, PO Box 197, Glen Osmond, SA 5064, Australia
3Institute for Land, Water and Society, Charles Sturt University, PO Box 789, Albury, NSW 2640, Australia
4Carr Consulting, 1215 Washington Ave., Wilmette, Illinois, USA

Contact the author

Keywords

Wine regionality, Australian Shiraz, wine sensory profile, wine chemical profile, wine climate profile

Tags

IVES Conference Series | Terroir 2020

Citation

Related articles…

The Wine Active Compounds (WAC) conference 2022

The 5th edition of the International Conference Series on Wine Active Compounds (WAC) will be held from 29 June to 1 July 2022 (Dijon, France). All authors with accepted abstracts will have the possibility to publish either a short 4-pages article or a...

Phenotyping bud break and trafficking of dormant buds from grafted vine

In grapevine, phenology from bud break to berry maturation, depends on temperature and water availability. Increases in average temperatures accelerates initiation of bud break, exposing newly formed shoots to detrimental environmental stresses. It is therefore essential to identify genotypes that could delay phenology in order to adapt to the environment. The use of different rootstocks has been applied to change scion’s characteristics, to adapt and resist to abiotic and biotic stresses[1].

Implementing VIS-NIR spectroscopy as a rapid and non-intrusive technique for assessing anthocyanin and phenolic concentrations in Vitis vinifera L. Grenache whole grape berries

Anthocyanins and phenolic compounds play a crucial role in winemaking, contributing to the profile, flavor, color, texture, and stability of wine. Grape clusters, specifically Vitis vinifera L. cv. Grenache, were handpicked from a commercial vineyard sited in Tudelilla, La Rioja, Spain (42°18′ 52.26″, Long. -2°7′ 59.15″, Alt. 582 m) on five distinct dates from veraison to harvest during the 2015 season. Non-contact spectral measurements were conducted on intact grape berries using a VIS-NIR spectrometer operating in the 570 – 1000 nm spectral range under controlled laboratory conditions, positioned at a distance of 25 cm from the berries. The quantification of 16 anthocyanins and phenols in 120 grape clusters was performed using HPLC, established as the reference method for validating the spectral tool.

Alternative training system for cv ‘Erbaluce’: comparison between pergola and VSP system during 2006 and 2007 years

The ‘Erbaluce‘, a grapevine cultivar from which in the Canavese (Piedmont, Italy) different types of white DOC wines are obtained, is traditionally trained on a support structure commonly known as “pergola” having three to five long “cords” which consist of three cordons and canes interlaced together.

Implementation of hyperspectral image analysis for evaluating table grape quality on bunch and berry level

Typically, subjective, and visual methods are used by grape growers to assess harvest maturity. These methods may not accurately represent the maturity of an entire vineyard – especially if extensive and representative sampling was not used. New technologies have been investigated for improved harvest management decisions. Spectroscopy methods utilizing the near-infrared region of the light spectrum is one such technology investigated as an alternative to classic methods and particularly the application of hyperspectral imaging (HSI) has recently gained attention in research. HIS is a spectroscopic technique that obtains hundreds of images at different wavelengths collecting spectral data for each pixel in the sample i.e., providing both spectral and spatial data.