Attitudes towards natural wines among Spanish winemakers: Relationship with environmental awareness

There is an important movement in the wine industry towards the production of alternative and more sustainable wines. Natural wine (NW) is a controversial category of alternative wines, which needs to be further explored. Given the role of technical experts as opinion leaders, the present work aims to explore the attitudes of Spanish winemakers towards NW and their relationship with their overall environmental awareness. Therefore, 307 Spanish winemakers completed a questionnaire to evaluate: (1) their attitudes towards NW by scoring their agreement with 31 statements, (2) their ecological awareness by evaluating 11 items, (3) their frequency of consumption and interest towards NW, and (4) their sociodemographic profile and general information about wine production. PCA with varimax rotation calculated on 28 of the 31 statements related to their attitudes showed six independent dimensions. Further hierarchical cluster analysis calculated with the six dimensions showed five clusters of wine experts with different attitudes towards NW. Results show that there is a major negative attitude towards the flavour of NW, their ageing capacity and their quality-price ratio, but a positive one in terms of economic impact for the wine industry. Aspects related to the role of NW in tradition, social identity, ecology, health, artisanal production and economic feasibility mark differential attitudes. Interestingly, the dimension related to winemakerś attitude towards tradition, social identity, and ecology of NW was positively correlated with their overall ecological awareness and thus their life style. This paper sheds light in the understanding of the behaviour of Spanish winemakers regarding ecological transition and provides tools for policymaking regarding NW certification.

Natural versus conventional production of Spanish white wines: an exploratory study

BACKGROUND

Natural wine (NW) lacks an official or agreed definition, but it can be generally described as a wine produced with organic or biodynamic grapes with minimal intervention in the cellar, and with minimal or no use of oenological additives. The present study aimed to test the hypotheses that self-defined NWs differ from conventional wines (CW) in their chemical composition and main sensory characteristics. The levels of conventional oenological parameters, turbidity, biogenic amines, ochratoxin A, ethyl carbamate, sulphites, chlorides, some metals, major, trace and Strecker aldehyde volatile compounds were determined in 28 wines, including natural and conventional Spanish commercial white wines. Wines were also sensory described following a labelled free sorting task.

RESULTS

NWs presented higher pH, volatile acidity (VA) and turbidity values, and a more intense yellow colour, whereas they have a lower malic acid content compared to theor conventional counterparts. NWs presented lower levels of total sulphur dioxide but significantly higher levels of biogenic amine putrescine, although both compounds are within the legal limits in all cases. None of the dimensions of the similarity space discriminated NWs from CWs. However, 70% of the NWs were grouped on the basis of various aromatic defects related to their higher content in 4-ethylphenols and VA. The remaining 30% were not differentiated from their conventional counterparts.

CONCLUSION

It could be confirmed that NW can be globally differentiated from CW with respect to to their chemical and their sensory profiles, whereas the content in toxicants was not significantly different, with the exception of total sulphur dioxide and putrescine levels. © 2023 The Authors. Journal of The Science of Food and Agriculture published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd on behalf of Society of Chemical Industry.

Environmental Impacts of Organic and Biodynamic Wine Produced in Northeast Italy

Increasing awareness of sustainability in the agri-food sector is leading to a gradual transition toward lower-impact farming systems, such as organic and biodynamic farming. The environmental performance of organic wines has largely been compared to that of conventional wines, and few researchers have investigated the differences between organic and biodynamic wine production from an environmental point of view. Therefore, in this study, the environmental profiles of two organic and two biodynamic wines produced in two areas in Northeast Italy were assessed by performing a “cradle-to-gate” analysis according to the life-cycle assessment (LCA) methodology. Results were used both to compare organic and biodynamic vitiviniculture and to draw overall conclusions on the environmental performance of each of the analyzed wines in order to identify environmental hotspots and provide recommendations to stakeholders. Production of the glass bottles was identified as the main source of environmental burden in all four systems, followed either by the production and use of fertilizers and pesticides, or the use of agricultural machinery. Results also showed that biodynamic wines seem to be responsible for lesser environmental impacts than organic ones.

Mechanisms to control grape erineum mite Colomerus vitis Pgst. in organic, biodynamic and traditional vineyards of the Crimea

Eco-oriented organic and biodynamic vineyards no longer relying on pesticides in protection schemes are indicative of a current trend in grape and wine growing of the Crimea. In this connection, new solutions to reduce pests and diseases have to be sought for, and monitoring which includes both eco-faunistic research and prediction of the numbers of phytophages is becoming of primary importance in the system of control of injurious species on grapes. A wide distribution of grape erineum mite Colomerus vitis Pgst. was registered in the bearing study vineyards on the South Coast of the Crimea and in the south-west of the Peninsula though its economic damage is negligible. The risk of the detrimental effect of the mite in the young study vineyards during the first two years after planting was stated. Key mechanisms to regulate the numbers of C. vitis in the organic and biodynamic study vineyards were revealed, such as winter pruning of canes as part of farming practices, application of sulfur to control Erysiphe necator, and natural regulation by indigenous predatory species of mites and other insects.

Evaluation of the Intrinsic and Perceived Quality of Sangiovese Wines from California and Italy

Sangiovese is the most cultivated red grape variety in Italy where it is certified for the production of several Protected Designation of Origin (PDO) wines, and it is one of the most cultivated Italian red grape varieties in California. Despite the global distribution of this variety, there is a lack of international studies on Sangiovese grapes and wines. For this reason, the present study aimed to compare 20 commercial Sangiovese wines from 2017 harvest, 9 produced in Italy (Tuscany) and 11 in California, in order to evaluate the intrinsic and perceived quality. The eligibility, identity, and style properties (the intrinsic quality) of the wines were evaluated. A group of 11 Italian experts evaluated the perceived quality by rating the typicality of the wines. The experimental data showed that the intrinsic quality of Sangiovese wine samples was affected by the growing area; in particular, the wine resulted very different for the color indices and polyphenol composition. The above differences in intrinsic quality levels did not lead to a different evaluation of the perceived quality (typicality) by the wine experts. The results evidenced that Sangiovese variety is recognizable also if grown outside its original terroir, and fresh and fruity wines were considered more typical. This study expands our current knowledge of Sangiovese wines and the contribution of regional characteristics to the composition of wine.