Vineyard
Table of contents
Vineyard management practices are directed toward obtaining the maximum fruit yield of the desired quality.
Training
Training is the development of a permanent wine structure and the location of renewal wood. This is done to ensure that shoot and hence, fruit growth occurs in the desired locations of the vine framework. It is usually associated with a support, suck as a trellis. It takes into consideration environmental factors, such as climate and soil, harvest practices, in particular, if fruit is harvested mechanically, and the fruit characteristics of the vine.
Pruning
Pruning is the partial selective removal of canes, shoots, wood, and leaves, or the severing of roots to obtain the goals of training and canopy management. Pruning most commonly refers to the removal of excessive growth before the beginning of the next season. This type of pruning is conducted when the vine is dormant in winter, and the absence of doliage makes it easier to select the parts of the vine to be removed.
Pruning allows the selection of bearing wood, so spurs and canes, and thereby influences the location and development of canopy growth. This, in turn, can affect grape yield, health, and maturation, as well as pruning and harvesting costs.
Canopy management
Canopy management is generally viewed as positioning and maintaining growing shoots and their fruit in a microclimate that is optimal for grape quality, inflorescence initiation, and cane maturation.
Shoot thinning
Shoots are often removed in situations where two shoots have burst from a single bud or when shoots have burst from basal buds. This can result in a very dense canopy with excessive leaf and bunch shading.
Vine balance
Vine balance is the equilibrium between vegetative vigour, root growth, and fruit load, which is consistent with high quality fruit of a targeted style. The two most common ways to assess vine balance are to look at the ratio between the yield and pruning weight or the ratio of leaf area to the fruit yield.
Harvest decisions
Climate and harvest time have a big impact on the final aroma and flavour of a wine. This change in aroma and flavour profile also allows us to harvest fruit that will be appropriate for particular wine styles. Generally, when fruit is picked at a lower sugar level (10.5 - 12 Baumé) and has higher acidity the aroma and flavour attributes are fresher, less ripe and more suited to sparkling wines for examples. At higher sugar levels (13.5 - 15.5 Baumé) and lower acidity the aroma and flavour attributes are riper and more developed and suited to full-bodied wines.
Below are examples of some of the aroma and flavour attributes found in wines made from popular white and red grapes.
