Tracking trends in Australian wine composition and vineyard and winery practices
Abstract
This project tracked trends in Australian wine composition and vineyard and winery practices. It developed a database of core compositional parameters and supported a survey of Australian viticultural and wine production practices. Targeted information was generated on trace metal content, lead concentrations in fortified wines, Brettanomyces spoilage markers, agrochemicals including iprodione and glyphosate, alcohol measurement, the vintage variability of alcohol by variety and the components contributing to the dietary energy content of wine. Two publications were produced, comprising a report on the AWRI Vineyard & Winery Practices Survey and a three-part article summarising trends in the composition of Australian wine from 1990 to 2021.
Summary
This project succeeding in providing robust and ongoing data to track trends in Australian wine composition and the vineyard and winery production practices used within the Australian grape and wine industry. The data generated are a valuable resource that will assist future planning of research and production activities and informed responses to government regulation, market access and research.
A regularly updated database of compositional parameters has been developed, to ensure that future research projects will have access to robust information from which to develop conclusions. This database will also act as a significant resource in discussions on future regulatory issues in export markets and help support national approaches to issues such as energy labelling.
The project supplied significant targeted data sets for a range of wine compositional parameters requested by peak wine bodies to address topical issues in domestic and export markets, including:
- the average trace metal content of Australian wine
- lead concentrations in table and fortified wines
- Brettanomyces spoilage markers
- iprodione and glyphosate in Australian wine
- the relative accuracy of alcohol measurement techniques
- the vintage-to-vintage variability of alcohol in certain varieties
- the contribution to dietary energy content of different wine components.
This information has been integral to the efforts of industry peak bodies and government when formulating responses to market trade issues and the development of national regulations. Ad hoc information on many other attributes of Australian wine was also provided on request to peak bodies as issues arose.
The two major publications arising from the project i.e. a report on the AWRI Vineyard & Winery Practices Survey and a three-part article on trends in the composition of Australian wine from 1990 to 2021, provide important benchmarks for future work and in-depth understanding of Australian wine and production processes. Eight articles, ten presentations and ten posters were also developed.