Influence of Soil Management on the Red Grapevine (Vitis vinifera L.) Mencía Must Amino Acid Composition and Wine Volatile and Sensory Profiles in a Humid Region

Abstract

Adopting cover crops for vineyard soil management can provide several benefits, including soil protection, reductions in vine vigor, and enhancements in berry composition. However, the effects of this practice on wine aroma have seldom been addressed. This study aimed to determine the influence of different cover crops and soil tillage on the must and wine amino acid composition and wine volatile compounds of the red cultivar, 'Mencía' (Vitis vinifera L.), grown in Northwest Spain. Treatments consisted of soil tillage (ST), native vegetation (NV), English ryegrass (ER), and subterranean clover (SC). Cover crops did not alter the macro-constituents of musts; however, musts from NV and SC tended to lower concentrations of amino acids. Some color attributes of wines were influenced by cover crops in the vineyard. Methanol and trans-linalool oxide (pyran) concentrations in wines were significantly affected by soil management. Professional tasters encountered differences in visual, aroma, and palate descriptors of wines depending on the treatment imposed in the vineyard. These alterations in sensory properties seemed to obey to slight modifications of wine chemical characteristics due to vineyard soil management. According to these results, cover crops might be useful for modulating wine aroma in humid climates.

Understanding and managing nitrogen nutrition in grapevine: a review

“…Consequently, AF was faster and the wines were significantly preferred (better aroma and mouthfeel, lower bitterness), in comparison to a mix of perennial and competitive grasses, such as Festuca rubra, Festuca ovina, Poa pratensis, Poa compressa, which reduced soil N availability (Spring, 2002). However, these results contradict those of Bouzas-Cid et al (2018a) obtained from the cultivar, Mencia, under humid conditions in Spain. Depending on the environmental conditions, an adapted cover crop could be a sustainable solution for soil management and an option for modulating must composition and wine sensory profiles.…”

“…Soil maintenance has a direct impact on grapevine root development and nutrition, with further consequences on must N composition and wine sensory profile (Bouzas-Cid et al, 2018a). Proper soil maintenance guarantees sustainable soil fertility with proper N mineralisation and availability of mineral N for the plant.…”

Effect of Soil Management and Training System on Negroamaro Wine Aroma

“…Vineyard floor management may contribute in improving overall wine quality, including its aroma profile [ 16 , 17 ]. Indeed, in a recent study aimed to determine the influence of different cover crops and soil tillage on the wine volatile compounds of a Spanish red cultivar, it has been shown how wines from the cover crop treatments tended to have higher concentrations of ethyl esters, volatile fatty acids, and free terpenes than wines from the soil tillage control under that humid climate condition [ 18 ]. Training system is an important factor to manage canopy, which plays a fundamental role both in light energy capture via photosynthesis and in water use, as it regulates transpiration and microclimate of ripening grapes, thus affecting yield and quality.…”

Terroir Effect on the Phenolic Composition and Chromatic Characteristics of Mencía/Jaen Monovarietal Wines: Bierzo D.O. (Spain) and Dão D.O. (Portugal)

“…), by García-Falcón et al [ 27 ] also for ‘Mencía’ wines (range from 11.2 to 12.6 a.u. ), by Bouzas-Cid et al [ 16 ] (range from 9.1 to 10.8 a.u. ), and by Soto Vázquez et al [ 29 ] (range from 7.37 to 11.57 a.u.).…”

“…The phenolic, aroma, and mineral composition, as well as the sensory descriptors of red wines vinified with ‘Mencía’ grape variety, were studied by several authors. There are various works concerning the characterization of the aroma profile of ‘Mencía’ red wines [ 10 , 11 , 12 , 13 , 14 , 15 , 16 ], with an observed change in the ‘Mencía’ wine aroma profile depending on the grape’s geographic origin and vintage [ 17 , 18 ]. Also, pre-fermentative maceration techniques (enzymes, refrigeration, and cryomaceration) were shown to influence the aroma profile of ‘Mencía’ wines [ 19 , 20 ].…”