The demand for chemical-free beverages is posing a challenge to the wine industry to provide safe and healthy products with low concentrations of chemical preservatives. The development of new technologies, such as Atmospheric Pressure Cold Plasma (APCP), offers the wine industry the opportunity to contribute to this continuous improvement. The purpose of this research is to evaluate the effect of Argon APCP treatment, applied in both batch and flow systems, on Tempranillo red wine quality. Batch treatments of 100 mL were applied with two powers (60 and 90 W) at four periods (1, 3, 5, and 10 min). For flowing devices, 750 mL of wine with a flow of 1.2 and 2.4 L/min were treated at 60 and 90 W for 25 min and was sampled every 5 min. Treatments in batch resulted in wines with greater color intensity, lower tonality, and higher content in total phenolic compounds and anthocyanins, so that they were favorable for wine quality. Among the batch treatments, the one with the lowest power was the most favorable. Flow continuous treatments, despite being more appropriate to implement in wineries, neither led to significant improvements in the chromatic and phenolic wine properties nor caused wine spoilage.

The current study aims to gather information about the color-related characteristics and the monomeric phenolic composition of carbonic maceration (CM) wines. The study was conducted over two vintages, with two different grape varieties. Color-related general parameters and wine monomeric phenolic composition were determined in both free-run and press CM fractions and were compared to conventional winemaking (CW). Overall, wines made by CM had lower phenolic content and color intensity. The analysis of wine detailed phenolic composition showed that CM wines were characterized by low contents of anthocyanins and flavonols. In contrast, free-run wine obtained by CM had the greatest concentration of flavanols and hydroxycinnamic acids, probably due to the presence of stems during the fermentation. In conclusion, vinification by CM leads to important differences in wine phenolic composition and, as consequence, on wine color properties. These differences could play an important role in wine sensorial properties and wine aging potential.

Organic mulching offers numerous agronomical benefits, but its impact on wine quality remains unclear. This study assessed the effect of this practice on wine physicochemical, phenolic composition and sensory properties. Over four years, three organic mulches (grape pruning debris (GPD), straw (STR), and spent mushroom compost (SMC)) and two conventional practices (tillage (TILL) and herbicide (HERB)) were evaluated in two locations. Wines from mulching treatments exhibited higher pH, potassium, hue, and lower tartaric acid. Moreover, the SMC mulch treatment showed lower amounts of wine anthocyanins, flavonols and hydroxycinnamics, probably due to increased nutrient availability. However, no differences were detected in the wine sensory analysis. Therefore, organic mulches could be alternative practices to mitigate the consequences of climate change without significant impact on young wine's phenolic profile and sensory properties compared to HERB and TILL conventional soil management. However, future studies should focus on wine evolution during aging.

Research into alternative vineyard practices is essential to maintain long-term viticulture sustainability. Organic mulching on the vine row improves vine cultivation properties, such as increasing soil water retention and nutrient availability. This study overviewed the effects of three organic mulches (spent mushroom compost (SMC), straw (STR), and grapevine pruning debris (GPD)) and two conventional soil practices (herbicide application (HERB) and tillage (TILL)) on grapevine physiology, agronomy, and grape quality parameters over three years. SMC mulch enhanced soil moisture and nutrient concentration. However, its mineral composition increased soil electrical conductivity (0.78 dS m⁻¹) and induced grapevine water stress due to osmotic effects without significantly affecting yield plant development. Only minor differences in leaf physiological parameters were observed during the growing season. However, straw (STR) mulch reduced water stress and increased photosynthetic capacity, resulting in higher pruning weights. Organic mulches, particularly SMC and STR, increased grape pH, potassium, malic acid, and tartaric acid levels, while reducing yeast assimilable nitrogen. The effect of organic mulching on grapevine development depends mainly on soil and mulch properties, soil water availability, and environmental conditions. This research highlights the importance of previous soil and organic mulch analysis to detect vineyard requirements and select the most appropriate soil management treatment.