Grapevine vigour is correlated with N-mineralization potential of soil from selected cool climate vineyards in Victoria, Australia

Reducing sugar accumulation in grape (Vitis vinifera L.) berries may be a way to mitigate the effect of climate change. Managing canopy and crop load is an effective way to do so, however, reducing canopy size has been demonstrated to induce undesirable effects on anthocyanins. The aim of this study was to test if an application of exogenous ABA on the grape berries of defoliated vines (⅔ of the leaves removed) can result in slower sugar accumulation while maintaining grape and wine quality. An experiment with defoliation and exogenous ABA application on directly on clusters (factorial design 2×2) was performed with ‘Tempranillo’ fruit-bearing cuttings.

During 1982 started our wine growing project at the Puntalarga Hill, between 2500 and 2600 meters a.s.l.: 5.78 ºN, 72.98 ºW. Pinot noir, white Riesling and Riesling x Silvaner crossings are the most planted grapevines. Since 1984 research and development activities are carried out on pertinent subjects.

Depuis 1973, une commission statutaire administre la législation qui régit le zonage vitivinicole en Afrique du Sud. La province «Le Cap de l’ouest» cerne toutes les zones viticoles sauf quatre unités. Pour la plupart, le Cap de l’ouest a un climat méditerranéen. Les zones viticoles – qui produisent les «vins d’origine» – sont des régions, des districts, des quartiers et des domaines. Les régions sont vastes, séparées par la topographie, par ex. des chaînes de montagnes et des fleuves. Généralement, chaque région représente une zone climatique. Le climat de chaque district est plus homogène. Les quartiers sont exactement délimités par le climat, la topographie et la géologie. Les domaines sont les plus petits. Chaque domaine doit avoir un seul propriétaire.

Aims: The Barossa wine region in South Australia comprises six sub-regions and is renowned for its Shiraz wines. However, there is no comprehensive documentation of the distinctive sensory characteristics of wines from these sub-regions.

Grapes from warm(ing) climates often contain excessive sugars but lack acidity. This can lead to highly alcoholic wines with compromised stability and balance. The yeast Lachancea thermotolerans can ameliorate such wines due to its metabolic peculiarity – partial fermentation of sugars to lactic acid. This study aimed to elucidate the population-wide diversity in L. thermotolerans, whilst selecting superior strains for wine sector. An extensive collection of isolates (~200) sourced from different habitats worldwide was first genotyped on 14 microsatellite loci. This revealed differentiation of L. thermotolerans genetic groups based on the isolation substrate and geography. The 94 genotyped strains were then characterised in Vitis vinifera cv. Chardonnay fermentations.