The first issue of the Wine & Viticulture Journal for 2022 contains our annual focus on climate change.

Viticultural consultant Richard Smart and former head of winemaking for the Brown Family Wine Group and now independent wine consultant Wendy Cameron ask whether the industry is ‘all in this together’ when it comes to meeting its target of zero carbon emissions by and highlight where reductions in greenhouse gas emissions could be achieved.

Wendy Cameron is also lead author on an article that reveals the results of a study which aimed to determine if grapes ripening faster or an advancement in veraison are the cause of the compressed vintages that have been experienced around Australia in recent times.

With increases in day and night temperatures forecast to rise under climate change, researchers from Canada present the findings from their work that investigated whether day and night temperatures affected anthocyanin concentrations in grapes and whether the difference between those temperatures had any influence.

A Portuguese team of researchers describe the outcomes of their exploration into whether kaolin applications designed to reduce summer stress on vines have any impact on grape berry composition.

Rounding out our focus on climate is an article by the Digital Agriculture, Food and Wine Research Group from the University of Melbourne which provides an overview of the novel digital and non-invasive technologies it has developed to monitor the levels of smoke contamination in vines and grapes and smoke taint in wine.

This issue’s Alternative Varieties column and tasting both featuring Italian varieties that thrive in warm climates, namely Inzolia (aka Ansonica) and Vermentino, respectively.

Our featured topic is oxygen management. Rachel Gore looks at the effects oxygen can have on wine when introduced during the various phases of the winemaking process and how it can be controlled; Spanish researchers describe their investigations into how much oxygen might be inadvertently introduced during racking operations; and read about a sensor that has been developed to monitor oxidative-reductive potential.

Read all about it here https://winetitles.com.au/wvj/current-issue/

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