Travel application for participation at the 10th In Vino Analytica Scientia Symposium (IVAS 2017) and laboratory visits in Spain and Germany

Abstract

This travel grant supported the University of Adelaide PhD student Olaf Schelezki to attend the 10th In Vino Analytica Scientia Symposium (IVAS) in Salamanca, Spain, where key findings of the ongoing PhD project were presented to an international audience of vine and wine scientists.

Subsequent laboratory visits at the Universidad Politecnica de Madrid and the University of Geisenheim identified common research aims and opportunities for project collaboration with the Training Centre for Innovative Wine Production. These are, among others, alternatives to sulfur additions in wine, the alcohol management with Non-Saccharomyces yeast strains and the use of precision viticulture technologies.

Summary

The In Vino Analytica Scientia symposium provides a platform for vine, wine and beverage scientists to exchange the latest research directions, along with current analysis methodologies in wine chemistry. My presentation was well received and the feedback by the wine science and wine industry community showed that our experimental design has been certainly of pioneering nature.

Presented projects of other research groups could be certainly of interest for Australian research activities in wine science. The subsequent laboratory visits at the Universidad Politecnica de Madrid and at the University of Geisenheim were also fruitful in discussing research and industry trends. Common interests were obvious, particularly in the development of SO2 alternatives, the effects of climate change on vine development, efficient waste management and alcohol management via alternative yeast strains or simple water additions.

Therefore, cooperation with these research groups, or the adaptation of similar projects in domestic research and development plans should be evaluated to enhance the sustainability of the Australian wine industry.