Building of a hierarchy of wines based on terroirs: an initiative from the producers of Muscadet

The Muscadet area is situated in the southeast of Nantes, close to the Atlantic coast. It constitutes the western extension
of the French vineyard “Loire Valley”. The Muscadet is renowned and often spontaneously linked to a white wine.
However it remains misconceived as an ordinary wine, lacking authenticity.

Residual copper quantification on grapevine’s organs

Copper is listed among the active substances candidates for substitution (Regulation EU 2015/408). Yet still, because of the lack of valid alternatives, the European Commission recently confirmed its usage authorization by limiting the maximum amount to 28 Kg per hectare in 7 years, i.e. an average of 4 kg/year (Reg. EU 2018/1981).This restriction is due to copper accumulation in soils and surface waters both caused by a steady application, especially on perennial crops (Riepert et al., 2013). The aim of this work is to determine if treatments with reduced copper dosages are able to reach different grapevine’s organs, with particular focus on the core of bunches, and if these small amounts can ensure the respect of the legislative prescription, without compromising the phytosanitary conditions of the vineyards, thus grape yields.

Budburst delay and berry ripening after vegetal oil application in Austria

Occurrence of freezing temperatures in early spring when grapevine shoots are developing is termed late frost in viticulture. Young green tissues are very sensible to temperatures below zero and damages often lead to important yield and quality losses such as the case in Europe in 2017. An indirect method to avoid late frost damage in vineyards consist in delaying the budburst. Previous research reported similar effects by applying vegetal oil on dormant buds. Here, we tested the application of rapeseed vegetal oil during late winter to delay the budburst on two V.vinifera cultivars of interest in Austria, Grüner Veltliner (GV) and Zweigelt (ZW).

How the physical components of the terroir can differently intervene in French wines DPO definitions.Example of Côte de Nuits in Burgundy

European regulations describe what elements must be given in the specifications of DPO determination ; mainly production conditions, links between quality and products characteristics and the physical traits of the production area. These elements are given in the “link to terroir” paragraph relating natural and human factors, detailed product characteristics linked to the geographical area and at last interactions between product originality and the geographical area.

Vignobles sur les pentes en Bourgogne : l’aube d’un nouveau modèle de l’Antiquité au Moyen Âge

La découverte d’une vigne gallo-romaine en plaine à Gevrey-Chambertin (Côte-d’Or) constitue un point important pour la compréhension de la construction des terroirs viticoles de Bourgogne. Sa situation en plaine constitue pour nous le point de départ d’une large réflexion sur la mise en place du modèle de viticulture de coteau qui prévaut en Bourgogne et sur les facteurs de ce changement de norme de qualité viticole. Les sources mobilisées pour cette approche interdisciplinaire et diachronique sont géomorphologiques, archéologiques et textuelles.