Nitrogen status and grape amino acids – an indicator of wine quality?

Abstract

Of all of the mineral nutrients, nitrogen often is the most important in terms of influencing grapevine growth and physiology. But how much nitrogen is good for the vine and beneficial to grape berry composition? The answer is of course, it depends… on a wide range of factors including cultivar/rootstock, climate, trellis system, canopy shading and timing and amount of fertiliser supplementation. In addition, any of the factors that manipulate grapevine nitrogen (and other nutrition), have the potential to significantly influence berry biochemistry and composition and ultimately the composition and quality of resulting wine. The focus of this article is to highlight the importance of amino acids (as the major class of nitrogen containing primary metabolites) and their potential impact on berry biochemistry and wine quality.