Macrowine 2021
IVES 9 IVES Conference Series 9 Macrowine 9 Macrowine 2021 9 Grapevine diversity and viticultural practices for sustainable grape growing 9 Effect of application of kaolin and pinolene on grape berry cell death, berry shrinkage, and ethanol accumulation

Effect of application of kaolin and pinolene on grape berry cell death, berry shrinkage, and ethanol accumulation

Abstract

AIM: Cell death in Vitis vinifera L. berries late in ripening and berry shrinkage (loss of mass) can decrease yield and reduce grape quality in cultivars such as Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, and especially Shiraz. Techniques to ameliorate effects of cell death and berry shrinkage are limited. Pinolene and kaolin are two types of film-forming antitranspirants applied to plants to reduce water loss. If these antitranspirants create a water impermeable coating, they may also restrict gas exchange, exacerbating hypoxia associated with cell death in grape berries. This study aimed to identify the effects on berry physiology during ripening of kaolin and pinolene coatings on Shiraz and Grenache bunches.

METHODS: Kaolin (6% w/w), pinolene (1% w/w) and water (control) were sprayed on Shiraz and Grenache bunches (2019-2020, Waite campus University of Adelaide) during ripening every 7 to 15 days. Change in berry mass, cell vitality, internal oxygen concentration, ethanol accumulation and bunch and canopy temperature were recorded.

RESULTS: Grenache berries had almost no shrinkage and no cell death during development contrasting to continuous decline in berry mass and cell vitality in Shiraz berries from 85 days after anthesis. Kaolin had no effects on berry properties. Pinolene reduced loss of berry mass in Shiraz and slightly increased berry mass in Grenache, leading to lower sugar concentrations in both cultivars. There was no effect of pinolene on berry oxygen concentration or cell vitality since both declined similarly to controls. There was an exponential increase in berry ethanol concentration with increasing mean daily temperature. Berry ethanol concentration for Grenache was much lower than for Shiraz under similar temperature conditions. There was no effect of treatments on berry ethanol concentrations.

CONCLUSIONS

Pinolene decreased berry shrinkage and prevented high sugar concentration presumably by reducing transpiration without impacting sugar content. It was surprising that this compound could decrease water loss without apparently affecting internal oxygen concentration in the berry. Ethanol accumulation during berry ripening could be a causative factor of cell death or is closely associated with it. Temperature may decrease berry vitality by accelerating respiration which leads to anoxia and high ethanol production.

DOI:

Publication date: September 2, 2021

Issue: Macrowine 2021

Type: Article

Authors

Lishi Cai

School of Agriculture, Food and Wine, The University of Adelaide, PMB1, Glen Osmond, SA 5064, Australia,Apriadi Situmorang School of Agriculture, Food and Wine, The University of Adelaide, PMB1, Glen Osmond, SA 5064, Australia Steve Tyerman School of Agriculture, Food and Wine, The University of Adelaide, PMB1, Glen Osmond, SA 5064, Australia

Contact the author

Keywords

shiraz, grenache, berry cell death, kaolin, pinolene (di-1-p-menthene), ethanol, oxygen

Citation

Related articles…

In vitro tissue culture as a tool for Croatian grapevine germplasm management

In vitro culture makes it possible to carry out specific studies that would not be possible with whole plants grown in the field or in a greenhouse. Cryopreservation allows long-term preservation without metabolic changes in the plant material and cryotherapy can be efficient in virus elimination, which is a major scientific challenge.
The preculture media of cryopreservation protocols were evaluated on three Croatian grape varieties with different antioxidants (salicylic acid, ascorbic acid and glutathione). The highest growth in vitro was achieved on the medium with the addition of glutathione and the lowest with the addition of salicylic acid.

The film-forming Pichia spp. in a winemaker’s toolbox: A simple isolation procedure and their performance in a mixed-culture fermentation of Vitis vinifera L. cv. Gewürztraminer must

Certain yeast species belonging to the Pichia genus are known to form a distinctive film on grape must and wine. In a mixed-culture type fermentation, Pichia spp. (P. kluyveri in particular) are known to impart beneficial oenological attributes. In this study, we report on an easy isolation method of Pichia spp. from grape must by exploiting their film-forming capacity on media containing 10% ethanol. We isolated and identified two Pichia species, namely Pichia kudriavzevii and Pichia kluyveri, and subsequently co-inoculated them with Saccharomyces cerevisiae to ferment Gewürztraminer musts. Noteworthy differences included a significant increase in the 2-phenethyl acetate levels with the P. kluyveri co-fermentation and a general increase in ethyl esters with the P. kudriavzevii co-fermentation. Both Pichia co-inoculations yielded higher levels of glycerol in the final wines. Based on all the wine parameters we tested, the P. kluyveri strain that was isolated performed similarly to a commercial P. kluyveri strain.

Application of a fluorescence-based method to evaluate the ripening process and quality of Pinot Blanc grape

The chemical composition of grape berries at harvest is one of the most important factors that should be considered to produce high quality wines. Among the different chemical classes which characterize the grape juice, the polyphenolic compound, such as flavonoids, contribute to the final taste and color of wines. Recently, an innovative non-destructive method, based on chlorophyll fluorescence, was developed to estimate the phenolic maturity of red grape varieties through the evaluation of anthocyanins accumulated in the berry skin. To date, only few data are available about the application of this method on white grape varieties.

Differences in the chemical composition and “fruity” aromas of Auxerrois sparkling wines from the use of cane and beet sugar during wine production.

The main objective of this study was to establish if beet sugar produces a different concentration of “fruity” volatile aroma compounds (VOCs), compared to cane sugar when used for second alcoholic fermentation of Auxerrois sparkling wines. Auxerrois base wine from the 2020 vintage was separated into two lots; half was fermented with cane sugar and half with beet sugar (both sucrose products and tested for sugar purity). These sugars were used in yeast acclimation (IOC 2007), and base wines for the second fermentation (12 bottles each). Base wines were manually bottled at the Cool Climate Oenology and Viticulture Institute (CCOVI) research winery. The standard chemical analysis took place at intervals of 0, 4 weeks, and 8 weeks post-bottling. Acidity and pH measurements were carried out by an auto-titrator. Residual Sugar (g/L) (glucose (g/L), fructose (g/L)), YAN (mg N/L), malic acid, and acetic acid (g/L) were analyzed by Megazyme assay kits. parameters were analyzed by Megazyme assay kits. Alcohol (% v/v) was assessed by GC-FID. VOC analysis of base wines, finished sparkling wines, as well as the two sugars in model sparkling wine solutions, was carried out by GC-MS. VOCs included ethyl octanoate, ethyl hexanoate, ethyl butanoate, ethyl decanoate, ethyl-2-methylbutyrate, ethyl-3-methylbutyrate, ethyl 2-methyl propanoate, ethyl 2- hydroxy propanoate, 1-hexanol, 2-phenylethan-1-ol, ethyl acetate, hexyl acetate, isoamyl acetate and 2-phenylethyl acetate.

WHICH TERROIR-RELATED FACTORS INFLUENCE THE MOST VOLATILE COMPOUND PRODUCTION IN COGNAC BASE WINE?

Cognac is a famous spirit produced in southwest France in the region of the eponymous town from wines mainly from Vitis vinifera cv. Ugni blanc. This variety gives very acidic and poorly aromatic base wines for distillation which are produced according to a very specific procedure. Grapes are picked at low sugar concentrations ranging 13-21 °Brix and musts with high turbidity (>500 NTU) are fermented without sulphite addition [1]. Fermentative aromas, as esters and higher alcohols, are currently the main quality markers considered in Cognac spirits.