Impact of chitosan treatment on the physico-chemical features of a sangiovese red wine

The phenolic component of red wine is responsible for important elements of flavor and mouthfeel, and thus quality of the finished wine. Additionally, many of these phenolics have been associated with health benefits such as reduction of the risk of developing cardiovascular disease, cancer, osteoporosis and preventing Alzheimer’s disease. While the origins, concentrations, and chemistries of the phenolics in a finished red wine are well known, the fundamental mechanisms and kinetics of extraction of these phenolics from grape skins and seeds during red wine fermentation are poorly understood. This lack of knowledge regarding the extraction mechanisms of phenolics during red wine fermentation makes informed manipulations of the finished wine’s phenolic composition difficult.

The yeast ecosystem in grape musts is quite broad and depends on the region and the health of the grapes. Within this, there are yeasts that can generate fermentative deviations and/or cause defects in the wine. It is very important to address this issue because there are significant economic losses in the wine industry when the fermentation process and/or the organoleptic characteristics of the wine are negatively affected, even more today since climate change has a marked effect on the composition of this ecosystem. The aim of this work is to characterize the behavior regarding detrimental oenological features of potential spoilage yeasts isolated from viticultural environments.

Climate change has become a major challenge for grape and wine production around the world

The knowledge of the grape aromatic composition during ripening provides very important information for winegrowers, who may carry out different viticultural practices, or determine the harvest date more accurately. However, there are currently no tools that allow this measurement to be carried out in a non-invasive and rapid way. For this reason, the aim of this work was to design a non-invasive methodology, based on hyperspectral imaging to estimate the aromatic composition and total soluble solids (TSS) of Tempranillo Blanco berries during ripening.

Regarding the food quality, authenticity is one of the most important issues in the context of ensuring the safety and security of consumers, but is also more important when it comes to wine (one of the most counterfeited foods in the world).