«Observatoire Mourvèdre»: (2) climatic mapping for successful plantation of Cv. Mourvèdre

Vineyard yield estimation brings several advantages to the entire wine industry. It can provide useful information to support decision making regarding bunch thinning practices, harvest logistics and marketing strategies, as well as to manage stored wine and cellar tanks allocation. Today, this estimation is performed mainly using manual methods based on destructive bunch sampling.

Infection of the grapes with Botrytis cinerea has a tremendous impact on the resulting crop yield and quality. Well-known problems that are associated with B. cinerea are specific off-flavors, poor filterability, and brownish color in white wines. The development of a B. cinerea infection strongly depends on weather conditions and is highly variable through different vintages. Typical control measures include defoliation and the use of fungicides, which involves high personnel and material costs. They also involve a great risk, especially since the effectiveness and time point of these treatments are difficult to predict.

The main challenge faced by viticulture is to improve the quality of the wines, adapting them to the new consumer demands that demand wines with lower alcohol content and greater freshness. In the last 30 years, a clear modification has been observed in the composition of the grape due to climate change

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

Grape postharvest dehydration is a widely used technique for the special wines production, where genetic features, ripeness degree and environmental factors strongly influence the metabolic processes [1].