This study investigates the impact of bunch microclimate on the evolution of some relevant carotenoids in Nebbiolo grapes. Four bunch-zone microclimates, defined by different vineyard aspect and vine vigor, were characterized by radiation and temperature indices. Berry samples were collected from green phase up to harvest, during two consecutive seasons and carotenoid determination was assessed by High-Performance Liquid Chromatography (HPLC). High carotenoid concentrations were highlighted in Nebbiolo. Lutein and neoxanthin contents (μg berry⁻¹) varied similarly in both seasons achieving a concentration peak after veraison especially in the cooler plots while a variety effect on the lutein seasonal trend was presumed. Conversely, β-carotene content remained generally constant during ripening, with the exception of the south plots showing dissimilar evolution between the seasons. Furthermore, higher temperature in the less vigorous and south facing vineyards led to lower amounts of carotenoids, both during ripening and at harvest. Bunch zone temperature and light condition may affect both synthesis and degradation of grape carotenoids determining their amount and profile at harvest. These findings add further knowledge about the influence of climate changes on grape aroma precursors, and are useful to adapt cultural strategies and preserve grape quality consequently.

Soil moisture changes are generally due to external factors (precipitation, evaporation, etc.) and internal forces (gravitational force, capillarity, transpiration, etc.). When soil temperatures remain below 0 °C for a long time (hours or even entire consecutive days), part of the liquid water content of the soil can freeze, thus freezing/thawing effects must be taken into account in those conditions. The present work is devoted to the numerical modeling of the water phase change in the soil. The model used in this study for the land surface processes is UTOPIA (University of TOrino land Process Interaction in Atmosphere) model, which is the updated version of LSPM (Land Surface Process Model). Scientific literature proposes some formulations to account for freezing/thawing processes. Three different parameterizations have been compared using a synthetic dataset in order to assess which one performs best from a physical point of view. Parameterizing freezing/thawing processes creates numerical instability and water overproduction in the UTOPIA model. These problems have been solved and described in the paper by means of synthetic data created to test the new parameterizations. The results show that UTOPIA is able to capture the freezing/thawing physical processes.