italianoenglishfrançaisdeutschespañolportuguês
Language
Search
  • » News
  • » The impact of low winter rainfall on grape and wine composition

The impact of low winter rainfall on grape and wine composition

Recent research has demonstrated the relation between winter rainfall and vegetation growth, and its implications for grape and wine composition.

This interesting Australian paper, which has received the ASVO Best Oenology Paper Award 2022 (Australian Society of Viticulture and Oenology), highlights the importance of spring and winter soil water availability in defining wine style, and establishes a framework for the adoption of irrigation strategies to maintain the wine style of that particular region in a context of changing climate. Indeed, according to the authors, climate change will alter the wine styles of a given region if new practices are not adopted or existing practices are revised both in the vineyard and in the winery.

Studying Shiraz vineyards located in the Barossa region of Australia, different irrigation strategies were evaluated over three seasons in a vineyard where winter rainfall was excluded using rain hedges to mimic the possible extreme conditions we can expect from climate change. Irrigation was applied to complete soil profiles either during winter or during budbreak and all treatments were compared to vines receiving average winter rainfall.

Results showed that a reduction in winter rainfall by about one-third of the historical average had a major impact, reducing yield by up to 40 percent. Yield was partially restored with irrigation, but it had effects on vine balance and grape and wine composition. When soil moisture was restored during budbreak by natural rainfall or by additional irrigation, as opposed to progressive soil wetting during winter, the vines developed denser vegetations and the concentration of phenolic substances was reduced in the fruit and wine.

The ASVO article is available at this link

Published on 04/18/2023
Pictures
Related sheets
    New rapid antigen tests (RATs) for Botrytis detection
    Perhaps one of the only upsides to come from COVID-19 is the familiarity that many people now have with rapid antigen tests (RATs), and it’s this type of test that researchers and winemakers ...
    Published on:05/25/2023
    ENOFORUM 2023, the wine world's innovation in Vicenza
    A success beyond the most optimistic expectations, this in a nutshell is the comment on the 20th edition of Enoforum (the 12th in attendance in Italy), an international technical-scientific congres...
    Published on:05/24/2023
    Can we fight climate change without irrigation?
    Low rainfall and higher temperatures in the vineyard due to climate change can lead to a reduction in production levels, changes in the qualitative parameters of the harvest and an acceleration of ...
    Published on:05/09/2023
    Accurate sulphur dioxide measurement in the cellar: a practical guide for small and medium-sized wineries
    Pros and cons of the main in-house solutions on the market
    The main goal of this article is to be in support of producers and consultants of small and medium wineries who are looking for a practical, accurate and reliable method for sulphur dioxide determi...
    Published on:05/08/2023
    Calculation tool for winemaking
    Calculating the exact dosage to be used of the different additives and winemaking adjuvants is an activity to which winemakers devote a considerable amount of time, as well as representing a possib...
    Published on:05/08/2023
    State of the world vine and wine sector 2022
    The year 2022 was marked by high inflation and global supply chain disruptions. In such context, many markets saw significant increases in wine prices which lead to a slight decrease in volumes con...
    Published on:05/03/2023
© All Right Reserved
ISSN 1826-1590 VAT: IT01286830334
powered by Infonet Srl Piacenza
- A +
ExecTime : 1,421875