Climate variability and its effects in the Penedès vineyard region (NE Spain)

The role of soils and bedrock geology has long been acknowledged as a fundamental component of terroir. In South Africa the influence of geology is misunderstood and some important geological components will be highlighted in this paper.

The use of compost as amendment in agriculture is a well-established practice, strongly recommended for numerous benefits.

Wine aroma is a crucial quality criterion. A multitude of volatile compounds have been identified and correlated to the aroma attributes perceived in wine.

Climate change presents a significant challenge to grape growing worldwide as increased temperatures lead to wines with increased sugar and pH levels. Manipulation of the exposed leaf area is a powerful lever governing the assimilation and storage of non-structural carbohydrates in grapevines. Reducing the leaf-to-fruit ratio is now considered as a tool for adapting to hotter and dryer grape growing conditions.

Many works have been carried out to identify the key aroma volatile compounds of oak wood (e.g., whisky-lactone, furfural, maltol, eugenol, guaiacol, vanillin) using conventional gas chromatography coupled with olfactometry and mass spectrometry (GC-O-MS). Inspired by recent untargeted approaches in the field of food “omics”, this work aims to extend our knowledge on the impact of cooperage process on the volatile composition of oak wood using two-dimensional comprehensive gas chromatography coupled with time of flight mass spectrometry (GCxGC-ToFMS).