Assessment of Wine Quality in the Vineyard

Resumen

The research project whose preliminary results are presented in this paper is aimed at developing a rapid and reliable method to determine grape quality in the vineyard. Vegetative growth and yield data from 12 vineyards (Vitis vinifera L. 'Tempranillo') in the wine producing region of Rioja were studied. Besides, the main parameters of the chemical composition of the grapes, responsible for both the ripening of the pulp and the phenolic maturation, were also determined. The canopy surface area:grape yield ratio (CSA/Y) was the studied parameter which correlated most to the chemical composition of the grapes. The determination of this parameter in a number of vineyards helped to estimate some parameters responsible for the phenolic composition of the grapes such as total anthocyanins, extractable anthocyanins or colour intensity, which are quite difficult to determine by physicochemical methods.