Influence of canopy management on yield, grape and wine quality. Relationship between the potassium content and pH in must and wine of the cultivar “Tempranillo”

In recent years red wines are being produced in Andalusia from indigenous and foreign grape varieties, one of which is the Spanish variety Tempranillo.
In young vineyards the vegetation/production ratio tends to be unbalanced, whereby the must obtained is not of high quality. To achieve a better vegetation/grape production ratio different ways of managing the canopy have been tested. The study has been carried out on Vitis Vinífera L. Cvs. Tempranillo in a vineyard in the province of Cadiz in southern Spain, a zone considered to have a warm climate.
Canopy management techniques used are as follows: pruning later, removal of bunch, training higher and more buds. Pruning later causes less vegetation, yield and a reduction in berry size. Removing the bunch induces more vegetation and increases berry size increasing the potassium content and pH. Higher training improves yield. The higher number of buds increases production and vegetative development.
These techniques improve aeration and photosynthetic activity. In the area in which the bunches are located, the temperature is higher and the percentage humidity is lower relative to the control.
Despite having succeeded in increasing total acidity of the must in some cases, the pH of same was not lowered as the high concentrations of potassium salify the acids and raise the pH.