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Cabernet Sauvignon is one of the world's most widely recognized red wine grape varieties. It is grown in nearly every major wine producing country among a diverse spectrum of climates from Australia Okanagan Valley to Lebanon's Beqaa Valley. Cabernet Sauvignon became internationally recognized through its prominence in Bordeaux wines where it is often blended with Merlot and Cabernet Franc. From France and Spain, the grape spread across Europe and to the New World where it found new homes in places like California's Santa Cruz Mountains, Paso Robles, Napa Valley, New Zealand's Hawkes Bay, South Africa's Stellenbosch region, Australia's Margaret River, McLaren Vale and Coonawarra regions, and Chile's Maipo Valley and Colchagua. For most of the 20th century, it was the world's most widely planted premium red wine grape until it was surpassed by Merlot in the 1990s. However, by 2015, Cabernet Sauvignon had once again become the most widely planted wine grape, with a total of 341,000 hectares (3,410 km2) under vine worldwide.
A vineyard is a plantation of grape-bearing vines, grown mainly for winemaking, but also raisins, table grapes and non-alcoholic grape juice. The science, practice and study of vineyard production is known as viticulture. Vineyards are often characterised by their terroir, a French term loosely translating as "a sense of place" that refers to the specific geographical and geological characteristics of grapevine plantations, which may be imparted to the wine itself.
Barbera is a red Italian wine grape variety that, as of 2000, was the third most-planted red grape variety in Italy. It produces good yields and is known for deep color, full body, low tannins and high levels of acidity.
Viticulture or winegrowing is the cultivation and harvesting of grapes. It is a branch of the science of horticulture. While the native territory of Vitis vinifera, the common grape vine, ranges from Western Europe to the Persian shores of the Caspian Sea, the vine has demonstrated high levels of adaptability to new environments, hence viticulture can be found on every continent except Antarctica.
Chenin blanc is a White wine grape variety from the Loire Valley of France. Its high acidity means it can be used to make everything from sparkling wines to well-balanced dessert wines, although it can produce very bland, neutral wines if the vine's natural vigor is not controlled. Outside the Loire it is found in most of the New World wine regions; it is the most widely planted variety in South Africa, where it was historically also known as Steen. The grape may have been one of the first to be grown in South Africa by Jan van Riebeeck in 1655, or it may have come to that country with Huguenots fleeing France after the revocation of the Edict of Nantes in 1685. Chenin blanc was often misidentified in Australia as well, so tracing its early history in the country is not easy. It may have been introduced in James Busby's collection of 1832, but C. Waterhouse was growing Steen at Highercombe in Houghton, South Australia, by 1862.
Terroir is a French term used to describe the environmental factors that affect a crop's phenotype, including unique environment contexts, farming practices and a crop's specific growth habitat. Collectively, these contextual characteristics are said to have a character; terroir also refers to this character.
Biodynamic wines are wines made employing the pseudo-scientific biodynamic methods both to grow the fruit and during the post-harvest processing. Biodynamic wine production uses organic farming methods while also employing soil supplements prepared according to Rudolf Steiner's formulas, following a planting calendar that depends upon astrological configurations, and treating the earth as "a living and receptive organism."
The Côte de Nuits is a French wine region located in the northern part of the Côte d'Or, the limestone ridge that is at the heart of the Burgundy wine region. It extends from Dijon to just south of Nuits-Saint-Georges, which gives its name to the district and is the regional center. Though some white and rosé wines are produced in the region, the Côte de Nuits is most famous for reds made from pinot noir. The Côte de Nuits covers fourteen communes. Six produce grand cru wines, in the central district between Gevrey-Chambertin and Nuits-Saint-Georges, with four lesser villages either side. The Grand Crus of the Cote de Nuits are some of the smallest appellations in France, less than a hectare in the case of La Romanée.
South African wine has a history dating back to 1659, with the first bottle produced in Cape Town by its founder Jan van Riebeeck. Access to international markets led to new investment in the South African wine market. Production is concentrated around Cape Town, with major vineyard and production centres at Constantia, Paarl, Stellenbosch and Worcester. There are about 60 appellations within the Wine of Origin (WO) system, which was implemented in 1973 with a hierarchy of designated production regions, districts and wards. WO wines must only contain grapes from the specific area of origin. "Single vineyard" wines must come from a defined area of less than 5 hectares. An "Estate Wine" can come from adjacent farms if they are farmed together and wine is produced on site. A ward is an area with a distinctive soil type or climate and is roughly equivalent to a European appellation.
The Winkler Index, sometimes known as the Winkler Scale or WinklerRegions, is a technique for classifying the climate of wine growing regions based on heat summation or growing degree-days. In the system, geographical areas are divided into five climate regions based on temperature converted to growing degree-days, and is commonly known as Regions I–V. The system was developed at the University of California, Davis by A. J. Winkler and Maynard Amerine.
Utah wine refers to wine made from grapes grown in the U.S. state of Utah. Wine production in Utah, from Utah grown grapes has been on a steady increase since 2018 despite a generally naive Legislative body which frequently changes the regulations pertaining to wine production from legislative session to session. There are no designated American Viticultural Areas in Utah.
The Eola-Amity Hills AVA is an American Viticultural Area located in Polk County and Yamhill County, Oregon. It is entirely contained within the Willamette Valley AVA, and stretches from the city of Amity in the north to Salem in the south. The Eola and Amity hills cover an area west of the Willamette River approximately 15 miles (24 km) long by 6 miles (10 km) wide. The Eola-Amity Hills area benefits from steady winds off the Pacific Ocean that reach the Willamette Valley through the Van Duzer Corridor, a gap in the Oregon Coast Range, moderating the summer temperatures. The Eola Hills were named after the community of Eola, whose name was derived from Aeolus, the Greek god of the winds.
Richard Smart is an Australian viticulturalist and leading global consultant on viticulture methods, who is often referred to as "the flying vine-doctor". He is considered responsible for revolutionising grape growing due to his work on canopy management techniques.
In viticulture, the canopy of a grapevine includes the parts of the vine visible aboveground - the trunk, cordon, stems, leaves, flowers, and fruit. The canopy plays a key role in light energy capture via photosynthesis, water use as regulated by transpiration, and microclimate of ripening grapes. Canopy management is an important aspect of viticulture due to its effect on grape yields, quality, vigor, and the prevention of grape diseases. Various viticulture problems, such as uneven grape ripening, sunburn, and frost damage, can be addressed by skillful canopy management. In addition to pruning and leaf trim, the canopy is often trained on trellis systems to guide its growth and assist in access for ongoing management and harvest.
Old World wine refers primarily to wine made in Europe but can also include other regions of the Mediterranean basin with long histories of winemaking such as North Africa and the Near East. The phrase is often used in contrast to "New World wine" which refers primarily to wines from New World wine regions such as the United States, Australia, South America and South Africa. The term "Old World wine" does not refer to a homogeneous style with "Old World wine regions" like Austria, France, Italy, Portugal, and Spain each making vastly different styles of wine even within their own borders. Rather, the term is used to describe general differences in viticulture and winemaking philosophies between the Old World regions where tradition and the role of terroir lead versus the New World where science and the role of the winemaker are more often emphasized. In recent times, the globalization of wine and advent of flying winemakers have lessened the distinction between the two terms with winemakers in one region being able to produce wines that can display the traits of the other region—i.e. an "Old World style" wine being produced in a New World wine region like California or Chile and vice versa.
This glossary of viticultural terms list some of terms and definitions involved in growing grapes for use in winemaking.
Irrigation in viticulture is the process of applying extra water in the cultivation of grapevines. It is considered both controversial and essential to wine production. In the physiology of the grapevine, the amount of available water affects photosynthesis and hence growth, as well as the development of grape berries. While climate and humidity play important roles, a typical grape vine needs 25-35 inches of water a year, occurring during the spring and summer months of the growing season, to avoid stress. A vine that does not receive the necessary amount of water will have its growth altered in a number of ways; some effects of water stress are considered desirable by wine grape growers.
The use of vine training systems in viticulture is aimed primarily to assist in canopy management with finding the balance in enough foliage to facilitate photosynthesis without excessive shading that could impede grape ripening or promote grape diseases. Additional benefits of utilizing particular training systems could be to control potential yields and to facilitate mechanization of certain vineyard tasks such as pruning, irrigation, applying pesticide or fertilizing sprays as well as harvesting the grapes.
Climate change in recent times has become a major issue and talking point globally because of its effects on the environment and the repercussions this could be having or possibly have. The effects of climate change on Viniculture are described in this article.
Gregory V. Jones is an American research climatologist specializing in the climatology of viticulture, with a focus on how climate variation influences vine growth, wine production and the quality of wine produced. Jones serves as the Director of the Center for Wine Education and is Professor of Environmental Studies at Linfield College in McMinnville, Oregon. Previously he served as the Director of the Division of Business, Communication and the Environment at Southern Oregon University in Ashland, Oregon and was Professor in the University's Environmental Science and Policy Program.
References
- ↑ Proffitt, T., R. Bramley, D. Lamb, and E. Winter. 2006. Precision Viticulture: A New Era in Vineyard Management and Wine Production. Winetitles, Adelaide. ISBN 978-0-9756850-4-4
- ↑ Bramley R.G.V., Hamilton R.P. 2004. Understanding variability in winegrape production systems. 1. Within vineyard variation in yield over several vintages. Australian Journal of Grape and Wine Research 10: 32-45.
- ↑ Bramley R.G.V. 2005. Understanding variability in winegrape production systems. 2. Within vineyard variation in quality over several vintages. Australian Journal of Grape and Wine Research 11: 33-42.
- ↑ Robinson, J. (ed). 2006. The Oxford Companion to Wine, Third Edition. Oxford University Press. ISBN 0-19-860990-6
- ↑ CSIRO, 2008. Australia Precision Viticulture Overview, http://www.csiro.au/science/Precision-Viticulture.html, accessed December 15, 2008
- ↑ Goode, J. 2005. The Science of Wine: from Vine to Glass. University of California Press, Berkeley. ISBN 0-520-24800-7, ISBN 978-0-520-24800-7
- ↑ Weiss, S.B., D.C. Luth, and B. Guerra. 2003. Potential solar radiation in a VSP trellis at 38°N latitude. Practical Winery and Vineyard 25:16-27.
