Crop levels and pruning timing affect must and wine quality of Cabernet Sauvignon wine grape

Abstract

Cabernet Sauvignon wine grape cultivar is well adapted in many of the tropical conditions of the globe and is also widely grown in Indian conditions. The experiment was conducted on Cabernet Sauvignon vines grafted on 110R rootstock and spaced at a distance of 2.438 × 1.219 m. These vines were pruned on 14, 21 and 28 Sep., 2012 as first pruning (P1), second pruning (P2) and third pruning (P3), respectively and crop levels of 20, 30 and 40 bunches per vine were maintained as L1, L2 and L3, respectively. Samples of must and young wines were collected and analyzed by using OenoFossTM (a FTIR based wine analyzer). GC-MS with single quadrapole (source temperature of 230oC and quad temperature of 150oC) was used for estimation of aroma compounds. Analysis was carried out by DB-WAXetr column on full scan mode. The must and wine quality parameters were affected by both pruning time and crop levels. Wine from P1 was found with more ethanol as must of the same treatment contained more TSS. In case of crop level, L3 was recorded with maximum (10.80 per cent) ethanol followed by L2 and L1. The maximum titratable acidity in wines was recorded in L1 and minimum was in L3. The wines prepared from P2 with different crop levels were registered with higher colour intensity and maximum was in P2L2 (4.45). Delayed pruning combination with crop levels was noted in lower colour intensity and in P3L3 the value was only 2.20. Study on aroma compounds showed differences in conc. Wines from delayed pruning were found with better aromas.