Terroir 2020 banner
IVES 9 IVES Conference Series 9 Greek and Cypriot grape varieties as a sustainable solution to mitigate climate change

Greek and Cypriot grape varieties as a sustainable solution to mitigate climate change

Abstract

Aim: The aim of this report is to present evidence on the potential of Greek and Cypriot grape varieties to serve as a sustainable solution to mitigate climate change.

Methods and Results: The work provides a review of recent works involving Greek and Cypriot varieties’ performance under high temperatures and increased dryness.

Conclusions: 

Climate change could threaten the existing balance between local environmental conditions and vitivinicultural production systems over the majority of wine producing areas. The subsequent decrease in the suitability of the current winemaking regions will require, apart from short-term adjustments in vineyard management, the adaptation of plant material by the use of late-ripening and drought resistant varieties and clones. Greek and Cypriot grape cultivars appear to grow well under dryland conditions, and additionally they mature their crop later than most of the well-established international varieties. However limited evidence exists regarding the direct effects of high daytime temperatures and drought especially on the quality of their grapes. This information would greatly assist grape growers in improving cultivar selection and adjusting management decisions.

Significance and Impact of the Study: Indigenous grapevine varieties of the semiarid viticultural regions of Greece and Cyprus have received much less attention compared to other grapes native to Mediterranean areas and therefore deserve to be better studied as a sustainable solution in the context of climate change. However, substituting existing varieties will change the “identity” of (mainly) European wine appellations, therefore the effectiveness of any strategy depends on both the willingness of grape growers and consumers to accept new varieties and also on the flexibility of current legislation.

DOI:

Publication date: March 25, 2021

Issue: Terroir 2020

Type: Video

Authors

Stefanos Koundouras*

School of Agriculture, Aristotle University, 54124, Thessaloniki, Greece

Contact the author

Keywords

Plant material, grapevine, adaptation, temperature, drought

Tags

IVES Conference Series | Terroir 2020

Citation

Related articles…

Construction of a 3D vineyard model using very high resolution airborne images

In recent years there has been a growth in interest and number of research studies regarding the application of remote optical and thermal sensing by unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) in agriculture and viticulture. Many papers report on the use of images to map or estimate the growth and water status of plants, or the heterogeneity of different parcels. Most often, NDVI or other similar indices are used.

Organic mulches improve vine vigour, yield and physiological response in a semi-arid region

Recycled organic mulch within the row in vineyard floor management has become an interesting ecological strategy to adapt the crop to climate change consequences in semi-arid regions.
This study aimed to assess the impact of three recycled organic mulches [straw (STR), grape pruning debris (GPD), and spent mushroom compost (SMC)] and two conventional soil management practices [herbicide (HERB) and under-row tillage (TILL)] on vegetative vigour (NDVI), production (kg/plant), and physiological parameters (δ13C in grapes and leaf gas exchange during four grapevine phenology stages). Additionally, temperature and water soil parameters were collected at three soil depths. Data was collected during the 2021 and 2022 grapevine growing seasons in La Rioja, Spain.

Rootstock effects on cv. Ugni blanc berry and wine composition

In the Cognac region in France, Ugni blanc is the most planted grape variety (98% of the 80 500 ha). This vine region is in expansion due to the success of the associated well-known brandy and the need of high grape yield to guarrantee the production of base wine for distillation. About 2 to 3000 ha are newly planted each year and rootstocks are one powerfull tool for vineyard adaptation to soil or climate change. As rootstocks ensure water and mineral nutrient supplies to the scion, it is important to better understand their effect on berry compostionnal parameters such as sugars and nitrogen compounds, which are the main precursors for fermentary aroma metabolites, the latter being quality markers for Cognac after distillation.

The characteristics of strong territorial brands: the case of Champagne

While most brands belong to individual enterprises, some brands belong to groups of enterprises based in a single territory. This conceptual paper examines the characteristics

Effets des pratiques agro-viticoles sur l’activité biologique et la matière organique des sols : exemples en Champagne et en Bourgogne

The notion of terroir covers multiple components, from geology, pedology, geomorphology and climatology (Doledec, 1995), to aspects that are less well identified but which also intervene in the “typicality” of wines. This justifies the “zoning” approach (Moncomble and Panigaï, 1990) to define homogeneous areas, under the same agro-viticultural management and also identified at the product level (Morlat and Asselin, 1992).