Emerging Challenges Hindering the Climatic Changes: Perspectives for the Wine Industry

A special issue of Foods (ISSN 2304-8158). This special issue belongs to the section "Food Quality and Safety".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (31 August 2022) | Viewed by 16941

Special Issue Editors


E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Food Environmental and Nutritional Sciences (DeFENS), University of Milan, Milan, Italy
Interests: oenological field; fermented beverages

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Biological and Environmental Sciences and Technologies, University of Salento, S.P. 6, Lecce-Monteroni, I-73100 Lecce, Italy
Interests: viticulture; fruit quality; abiotic stress management
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

The climatic changes occurring since the last decades have been requiring adjustments into the wine production chain, from grape cultivation and vineyard treatments to the cellar management and winemaking decision. In this emerging scenario, both viticulturists and oenologists have been looking for solutions to adapt the production chain to the new environmental conditions. This Special Issue will compile researches related to the strategies counteracting the climate changes applicable either to the vineyard or to the winery. We invite submissions that exploring the pair environment-quality through the relationships between the chemical composition, sensory evaluation, and overall quality of grape and wine. Manuscripts dealing with the quantification and evaluation of the impacts of climate change on the wine production will be welcomed too. Papers regarding studies on sustainable approaches softening the environment influence are also encouraged.

We invite submissions comprising both original research and review articles that explore advancement to approach the climate change issues in the field as well as the environment-dependent chemical and/or sensory characteristics of grape and wine for inclusion in this Special Issue.

Dr. Daniela Fracassetti
Prof. Laura Rustioni
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Foods is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2900 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • Grape
  • Wine
  • Climatic changes
  • Vineyard
  • Cellar
  • Management
  • Composition
  • Sensory
  • Production chain
  • Quality

Published Papers (5 papers)

Order results
Result details
Select all
Export citation of selected articles as:

Research

Jump to: Review

15 pages, 942 KiB  
Article
The Effect of Irrigation-Initiation Timing on the Phenolic Composition and Overall Quality of Cabernet Sauvignon Wines Grown in a Semi-Arid Climate
by Elyashiv Drori, Sarel Munitz, Ania Pinkus, Maria Stanevsky and Yishai Netzer
Foods 2022, 11(5), 770; https://doi.org/10.3390/foods11050770 - 7 Mar 2022
Cited by 5 | Viewed by 2196
Abstract
In semi-arid areas, vineyards grown for winemaking are usually mildly irrigated by drip irrigation systems in a manner maintaining drought stress. This practice ensures the proper development of vegetative and reproductive organs on the one hand, and on the other, the development of [...] Read more.
In semi-arid areas, vineyards grown for winemaking are usually mildly irrigated by drip irrigation systems in a manner maintaining drought stress. This practice ensures the proper development of vegetative and reproductive organs on the one hand, and on the other, the development of high-quality grapes which can be hampered by overly abundant water application. In previous work, we have developed and demonstrated an irrigation model suitable for high-quality grape production in semi-arid areas. Here, we tackle the question of proper irrigation initiation dates—should one wait for vines to develop drought stress before the initiation of irrigation, or rather commence irrigation earlier? Our results show that vines which undergo initial irrigation late in the growing season tend to develop a lower midday stem water potential even after irrigation initiation. In addition, these vines tend to produce a lower number of bunches per vine and smaller berry size, leading to lower yields. The wine produced from the late-irrigated treatments had a higher phenolic content, primarily due to higher levels of catechin and epicatechin. Their levels increased as irrigation initiation dates were delayed, while caffeic acid levels showed an opposite trend. Late irrigation also led to higher color intensities compared to those of irrigation at earlier stages, due to higher levels of most anthocyanins. Finally, we show that the overall wine sensory score, representing its overall quality, was approximately five points higher for wines made from delayed irrigation treatments compared to wines made from early season irrigation treatments. Full article
Show Figures

Figure 1

12 pages, 3217 KiB  
Article
Climate Change Impacts on Plant Phenology: Grapevine (Vitis vinifera) Bud Break in Wintertime in Southern Italy
by Daniel Grigorie Dinu, Valentina Ricciardi, Cosimo Demarco, Gianroberto Zingarofalo, Gabriella De Lorenzis, Riccardo Buccolieri, Gabriele Cola and Laura Rustioni
Foods 2021, 10(11), 2769; https://doi.org/10.3390/foods10112769 - 11 Nov 2021
Cited by 16 | Viewed by 3380
Abstract
The effects of global warming on plants are not limited to the exacerbation of summer stresses; they could also induce dormancy dysfunctions. In January 2020, a bud break was observed in an old poly-varietal vineyard. Meteorological data elaboration of the 1951–2020 period confirmed [...] Read more.
The effects of global warming on plants are not limited to the exacerbation of summer stresses; they could also induce dormancy dysfunctions. In January 2020, a bud break was observed in an old poly-varietal vineyard. Meteorological data elaboration of the 1951–2020 period confirmed the general climatic warming of the area and highlighted the particular high temperatures of the last winter. Phenological records appeared to be significantly correlated to wood hydration and starch reserve consumption, demonstrating a systemic response of the plant to the warm conditions. The eight cultivars, identified by single-nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) profiles and ampelographic description, grown in this vineyard showed different behaviors. Among them, the neglected Sprino, Baresana, Bianco Palmento, and Uva Gerusalemme, as well as the interspecific hybrid Seyve Villard 12.375, appeared to be the most interesting. Among the adaptation strategies to climate changes, the cultivar selection should be considered a priority, as it reduces the inputs required for the plant management over the entire life cycle of the vineyard. Hot Mediterranean areas, such as Salento, are a battlefront against the climate change impacts, and, thus, they represent a precious source of biodiversity for viticulture. Full article
Show Figures

Figure 1

15 pages, 840 KiB  
Article
The Combined Use of Lachancea thermotolerans and Lactiplantibacillus plantarum (former Lactobacillus plantarum) in Wine Technology
by Ángel Urbina, Fernando Calderón and Santiago Benito
Foods 2021, 10(6), 1356; https://doi.org/10.3390/foods10061356 - 13 Jun 2021
Cited by 11 | Viewed by 2931
Abstract
Most commercialized red wines are produced through alcoholic fermentation performed by yeasts of the Saccharomyces genus, and a second fermentation performed by lactic bacteria of the Oenococus oeni species once the first is completely finished. However, the classical process can suffer complications, of [...] Read more.
Most commercialized red wines are produced through alcoholic fermentation performed by yeasts of the Saccharomyces genus, and a second fermentation performed by lactic bacteria of the Oenococus oeni species once the first is completely finished. However, the classical process can suffer complications, of which the risks can increase in grape juices with high contents of sugar and pH. Due to climate change, these situations are becoming more common in the winemaking industry. The main risks in those scenarios are alcoholic-fermentation stops or sluggish and undesirable bacteria development while alcoholic fermentation is not finished yet and wine still contains residual sugars. The study propose a novel alternative that offers a solution or reduces the risk of those scenarios while increasing acidity, which is another serious problem of warm viticulture regions. The alternative consists of the combined use of Lachancea thermotolerans to reduce the pH of musts that suffer from a lack of acidity, Lactiplantibacillus plantarum (formerly Lactobacillus plantarum) to achieve malic acid stability during the first stages of alcoholic fermentation, and Saccharomyces bayanus to complete the alcoholic fermentation in difficult wines of high potential alcohol degree of over 15% (v/v). The new proposed biotechnology produced wines with higher final concentrations in lactic acid, glycerol, color intensity, ethyl lactate and 2-phenyl ethyl acetate in 2.39 g/L, 0.52 g/L, 21%, 48% and 37% respectively than the classical methodology where Saccharomyces genus performs alcoholic fermentation and later Oenococus oeni performs malolactic fermentation. Additionally, the new alternative produced wines with lower concentration in ethanol, pH, acetic acid, ethyl acetate, diacetyl and 1-propanol in 0.37% (v/v), 0.26, 0.08 g/L, 22%, 69% and 28% respectively than the classic method. Full article
Show Figures

Figure 1

23 pages, 3323 KiB  
Article
Responses on Must and Wine Composition of Vitis vinifera L. cvs. Riesling and Cabernet Sauvignon under a Free Air CO2 Enrichment (FACE)
by Yvette Wohlfahrt, Claus-Dieter Patz, Dominik Schmidt, Doris Rauhut, Bernd Honermeier and Manfred Stoll
Foods 2021, 10(1), 145; https://doi.org/10.3390/foods10010145 - 12 Jan 2021
Cited by 10 | Viewed by 2599
Abstract
Challenges of climate change on the future grape and wine production are widely discussed in science and in the wine industry with the goal to maintain a consistent must and wine quality in the future. Therefore, the effect of elevated CO2 (eCO [...] Read more.
Challenges of climate change on the future grape and wine production are widely discussed in science and in the wine industry with the goal to maintain a consistent must and wine quality in the future. Therefore, the effect of elevated CO2 (eCO2)—as one of the relevant greenhouse gases jointly responsible for a changing climate—was investigated concerning the composition of must and wine made of two grapevine cultivars V. vinifera L. cvs. Riesling and Cabernet Sauvignon within the established VineyardFACE (Free-Air Carbon dioxide Enrichment) experiment. Must and wine analysis were conducted in three consecutive years (2014–2016) by analyzing standard must and wine parameters, e.g., total soluble solids (TSS), pH, total acidity (TA), organic acids (e.g., tartaric acid, malic acid, shikimic acid, citric acid, volatile acid and gluconic acid) or total phenolics (TP). Also, for both cultivars CIELab coordinates (L* for lightness, a* as green/red and b* as blue/yellow components) were used to test colour in young white and red wines. Additionally, total anthocyanins and monomeric indices were analyzed for young wines of the red cultivar Cabernet Sauvignon. With marginal differences between CO2 treatments, the composition of must and young wines was not found to be negatively influenced by an eCO2 concentration. Full article
Show Figures

Graphical abstract

Review

Jump to: Research

26 pages, 2963 KiB  
Review
An Integrative View of the Role of Lachancea thermotolerans in Wine Technology
by Javier Vicente, Eva Navascués, Fernando Calderón, Antonio Santos, Domingo Marquina and Santiago Benito
Foods 2021, 10(11), 2878; https://doi.org/10.3390/foods10112878 - 21 Nov 2021
Cited by 23 | Viewed by 4195
Abstract
The interest in Lachancea thermotolerans, a yeast species with unusual characteristics, has notably increased in all ecological, evolutionary, and industrial aspects. One of the key characteristics of L. thermotolerans is the production of high quantities of lactic acid compared to other yeast [...] Read more.
The interest in Lachancea thermotolerans, a yeast species with unusual characteristics, has notably increased in all ecological, evolutionary, and industrial aspects. One of the key characteristics of L. thermotolerans is the production of high quantities of lactic acid compared to other yeast species. Its evolution has mainly been driven by the influence of the environment and domestication, allowing several metabolic traits to arise. The molecular regulation of the fermentative process in L. thermotolerans shows interesting routes that play a complementary or protective role against fermentative stresses. One route that is activated under this condition is involved in the production of lactic acid, presenting a complete system for its production, showing the involvement of several enzymes and transporters. In winemaking, the use of L. thermotolerans is nowadays mostly focused in early–medium-maturity grape varieties, in which over-ripening can produce wines lacking acidity and with high concentrations of ethanol. Recent studies have reported new positive influences on quality apart from lactic acid acidification, such as improvements in color, glutathione production, aroma, malic acid, polysaccharides, or specific enzymatic activities that constitute interesting new criteria for selecting better strains. This positive influence on winemaking has increased the availability of commercial strains during recent years, allowing comparisons among some of those products. Initially, the management of L. thermotolerans was thought to be combined with Saccaharomyces cerevisiae to properly end alcoholic fermentation, but new studies are innovating and reporting combinations with other key enological microorganisms such as Schizosaccharomyces pombe, Oenocous oeni, Lactiplantibacillus plantarum, or other non-Saccharomyces. Full article
Show Figures

Figure 1

Back to TopTop