Partial root zone drying exerts different physiological responses on field-grown grapevine (Vitis vinifera cv. Monastrell) in comparison to regulated deficit irrigation.

Regulated deficit irrigation (RDI) and partial root zone irrigation (PRI) were compared for 4 years at two irrigation volumes (110mm year-1 (1) and 78mm year-1 (2)) in field-grown grafted Monastrell grapevines (Vitis vitifera L.) to distinguish the effects of deficit irrigation from specific PRI effects. PRI-1 and RDI-1 vines received ~30% of the crop evapotranspiration (ETc) from budburst to fruit set, 13-15% from fruit set to veraison and 20% from veraison to harvest.

Evaluating the Polyphenol Profile in Three Segregating Grape (Vitis vinifera L.) Populations.

This paper explores the characteristics of the anthocyanin and flavonol composition and content in grapes from plants resulting from intraspecific crosses of Vitis vinifera varieties Monastrell × Cabernet Sauvignon, Monastrell × Syrah, and Monastrell × Barbera, in order to acquire information for future breeding programs. The anthocyanin and flavonol compositions of twenty-seven hybrids bearing red grapes and 15 hybrids bearing white grapes from Monastrell × Syrah, 32 red and 6 white from Monastrell × Cabernet Sauvignon, and 13 red from Monastrell × Barbera have been studied. Among the intraspecific crosses, plants with grapes presenting very high concentrations of anthocyanins and flavonols were found, indicating a transgressive segregation for this character, and this could lead to highly colored wines with an increased benefits for human health.

Influence of cold pre-fermentation treatments on the major volatile compounds of three wine varieties.

The volatile compounds of wines made from three grape varieties (Monastrell, Cabernet Sauvignon and Syrah) using three pre-fermentation techniques (grape freezing, dry-ice and cold maceration) and a control treatment were measured. The different winemaking practices, which are intended to increase the aromatic properties of wines, produced results that depended on the variety concerned. For example, freezing the Cabernet Sauvignon and Syrah grapes produced different results compared with the respective controls, whereas few changes were found on freezing the Monastrell wine.

Increasing the phenolic compound content of grapes by preharvest application of abcisic acid and a combination of methyl jasmonate and benzothiadiazole.

Benzothiadiazole (BTH) and methyl jasmonate (MeJ) have been described as exogenous elicitors of some plant defense compounds, polyphenols among them. Given that they activate different arrays of biochemical reactions to induce resistance, the objective of this study was to determine whether the joint application of BTH and MeJ to grape clusters affects the level of the main flavonoid compounds in grapes and in the resulting wines. The results are compared with those obtained when abscisic acid (ABA), a plant growth regulator involved in several physiological processes, was sprayed in the same vineyard.

Contrasting physiological effects of partial root zone drying in field-grown grapevine (Vitis vinifera L. cv. Monastrell) according to total soil water availability.

Different spatial distributions of soil moisture were imposed on field-grown grapevines by applying the same irrigation volumes to the entire (DI; deficit irrigation) or part of the (PRD; partial root zone drying) root zone. Five treatments were applied: controls irrigated at 60% ETc (crop evapotranspiration) for the whole season (308 mm year(-1)); DI-1 and PRD-1 that received the same irrigation as controls before fruit set, 30% ETc from fruit set to harvest and 45% ETc post-harvest (192 mm year(-1)); and DI-2 and PRD-2 that were the same, except that 15% ETc was applied from fruit set to harvest (142 mm year(-1)). Compared with DI-1, PRD-1 maintained higher leaf area post-veraison and increased root water uptake, whole-plant hydraulic conductance, leaf transpiration, stomatal conductance, and photosynthesis, but decreased intrinsic gas exchange efficiency without causing differences in leaf xylem abscisic acid (ABA) concentration.

Grape skin and seed proanthocyanidins from Monastrell x Syrah grapes.

In this study, the grape skin and seed proanthocyanidin profiles from Monastrell x Syrah grape (Vitis vinifera L.) crosses were determined. Concentration and compositional information in extracts was determined by reversed-phase HPLC after acid-catalyzed cleavage in the presence of excess phloroglucinol.

Extraction and formation dynamic of oak-related volatile compounds from different volume barrels to wine and their behavior during bottle storage.

The extraction rate of furfuryl aldehydes, guaiacol, and 4-methylguaiacol, cis- and trans-oak lactone, and vanillin and the formation rate of furfuryl alcohol and the volatile phenols 4-ethylguaiacol and 4-ethylphenol have been studied in wines matured in different capacity oak barrels (220, 500, and 1000 L). Also, the behavior of these compounds during 1 year of wine bottle storage was followed. The lactones were extracted at a linear rate with large differences that depended on barrel volume.