Terroir 2008 banner
IVES 9 IVES Conference Series 9 Soils and plant material in prestigious Bordeaux vineyards impacts on yield and quality

Soils and plant material in prestigious Bordeaux vineyards impacts on yield and quality

Abstract

High resolution soil maps (scale : 1/3000) were created for seven of the most prestigious red wine producing estates in Bordeaux, covering in total approximately 400 ha. Soil type and grapevine variety were recorded for each vineyard block of these estates. A quality index was created by considering the destination of the grapes produced on each block, whether they were integrated in the first, the second or the third quality wine produced by the estate. Quality index was averaged over five vintages. Yield was measured for each vineyard block and averaged over five vintages. PEYROSOL (gravely soil) was the most frequent soil type in these estates (44% of the total mapped area). Soils with temporary water logging (REDOXISOL), heavy clay soils (PLANOSOL) and sandy-gravely soils (BRUNISOL) each covered 10% of the mapped area . Highest quality was obtained on PLANOSOLS, ARENOSOLS (sandy soils), BRUNISOLS and PEYROSOLS. Quality was low on COLLUVIOSOLS (deep soils on colluvium), LUVISOLS (leached soils) and REDUCTISOLS (soils with permanent water logging). Cabernet-Sauvignon was the dominant grapevine variety (59% of the mapped area), followed by Merlot (32%), Cabernet franc (8%) and Petit Verdot (1%). On average, the Quality Index was higher for Cabernet-Sauvignon and Merlot compared to Cabernet franc and Petit Verdot. Yield was dependent on soil type and cultivar. Comparison of soil type, cultivar and Quality Index can indicate which relationships between soil type / cultivar contribute to optimum quality performance in Bordeaux.

DOI:

Publication date: December 8, 2021

Issue: Terroir 2008

Type : Article

Authors

VAN LEEUWEN C. (1), RENOUF V. (1,2), TREGOAT O. (3), MARGUERIT E. (1) and ROBY J.-P. (1)

(1) ENITA – ISVV, 1 Cours du Général de Gaulle, CS 40201, F-33175 Gradignan cedex
(2) Laffort, BP 17, F-33015 Bordeaux cedex 15
(3) Olivier Tregoat, Viti Dévelopment, Expertise de terroir,39 rue Antoine Miquel, F-34500 Béziers

Contact the author

Keywords

Soil type, Bordeaux, estate, quality, yield

Tags

IVES Conference Series | Terroir 2008

Citation

Related articles…

Bilan de l’impact des pratiques viticoles sur la qualité biologique des sols

Dans le cadre de TerclimPro 2025, Laure Gontier a présenté un article IVES Technical Reviews. Retrouvez la présentation ci-dessous ainsi que l’article associé : https://ives-technicalreviews.eu/article/view/8481

Influence of ‘pinotage’ defoliation on fruit and wine quality

Among the different management techniques in Viticulture, which have
been developed with the purpose of optimizing the interception of sunlight, the photosynthetic capacity of
the plant and the microclimate of the clusters, especially in varieties that show excess vigor, the management of defoliation presents great importance. The defoliation consists of the removal of leaves that cover or that are in direct contact with the curls, which can cause physical damages in the berries, and aims to balance the relation between part area and number of fruits, providing the aeration and insolation in the interior of the vineyard, as well as reduce the incidence of rot in order to achieve greater efficiency in phytosanitary treatments and quality musts.

Development of a GRASS-GIS application for the characterization of vineyards in the province of Trento

The physical factors that influence the grape ripening include elevation, slope, aspect, potential global radiation, sun hours and soil type of the vineyards.

The chain of effects between sunburn necroses and rot infestation in the context of climate change

Climate change will increasingly challenge future viticulture due to long-enduring and extreme weather conditions, jeopardizing yield and wine quality in various ways.

Yield formation and grape composition: more than meets the eye 

Fruit quality in grapes is not well defined but is often depicted as correlating inversely with crop yield. Both fruit yield and composition, however, are made from distinct components that interact in complex ways. Reproductive growth of grapevines extends over two growing seasons. Inflorescences initiated in buds during the previous year differentiate flowers and set and develop berries during the harvest year.