Using image analysis for assessing downy mildew severity in grapevine

Climate change is increasing crop evapotranspiration and reducing water availability, especially in the Mediterranean area.

To obtain a quality wine, it is necessary to collect grapes in an optimal state of maturation, so the control of the ripening process is fundamental for the viticulturist.

Moderate wine consumption – with the meals – represents one of the beneficial components of the traditional mediterranean diet (med diet) and a positive item in the med diet score [1,2, 3]. The med diet is considered one of the best diets in the world and the world health organisation (who) identified this eating pattern as an effective strategy to prevent non-communicable diseases (ncd), since it is associated with lower disease occurrence and all-cause mortality [4] . Numerous well-conducted epidemiological studies have also reported that light-to-moderate intake of wine/alcoholic beverages is not only related to a reduced risk of cardiovascular disease, but also to all-cause mortality.

The production of fermented alcoholic beverages involves numerous processes in which microorganisms and enzymes convert components derived from the raw material into a wide range of compounds that affect the sensory characteristics of the resulting product. It is estimated that there may be as many as 800 to 1,000 such compounds in wine. These compounds belong to different chemical groups such as esters, alcohols, carboxylic acids, carbonyl compounds, polyphenols, sugars and many others.

The detection of reducing compounds such as phenolic acids, anthocyanins or tannins is of prime importance to decipher on the antioxidant and anti-aging properties of wines.