Title: WSET Level 3
Tags: c1_sat

Q: How to avoid over-use of medium (+) & (-)?
A: First choose between low-medium-high.
If medium was chosen, now choose between medium (+) & (-)

Q: How should wine white color be assessed?
A: While held at 45deg, look  where there is sufficient depth of liquid (the core of the bowl and not the rim)

Q: How should red wine color be assessed?
A: While held at 45deg, look at the rim, since at the core there is too much pigment the wine can seem opeque

Q: What is the one factor influencing a plant's growth that does not vary?
A: CO2

Q: How is a region's climate defined?
A: The annual pattern of temperature, sunlight and rainfall averaged out over several years

Q: How is weather defined?
A: The annual variation that happens relative to the climatic average

Q: Below what temperature is it too cold for a vine's cells to function?
A: 10 degrees C

Q: What happens to a vine above 22 degrees?
A: The vine's cell start to consume more sugar than the vine can produce

Q: What determines which vines will thrive within a certain region?
A: Temperature

Q: What has an impact on each stage of a vine's cycle?
A: Temperature

Q: What occurs later in a cooler region?
A: Bud burst

Q: What may happen to black grapes in cool growing conditions?
A: They will produce wines which are overly astringent and herbaceous (a result of being physiologically unripe)

Q: Why can white grapes cope with cooler conditions better?
A: They have no need for ripe tannins and wines are balanced with higher acidity levels

Q: List in order the key stages of a vine's growth cycle...
A: Budburst
Early shoot and leaf growth
Flowering and fruit set
Véraison/berry ripening
Harvest
Winter dormancy

Q: List the factors affecting annual temperature...
A: Latitude
Altitude
Ocean currents
Fog
Soil
Aspect

Q: How does latitude affect a vine's temperature needs?
A: The further from the equator, the cooler an area is on average.

Q: What approximate latitudes are best for viticulture? Why?
A: 30 - 50 degrees.These latitudes satisfy a vine's need for warmth, but also winter dormancy.

Q: How does temperature drop with altitude?
A: 0.6 degrees C with every 100m increase in altitude

Q: How do ocean currents affect climate/weather?
A: By cooling or warming the air above and around them

Q: How does fog affect temperature? List two examples of areas where this is an important factor...
A: It cools an area.
California and Casablanca in Chile.

Q: What kind of soil absorbs and reradiates the sun's heat?
A: Darker soils or those with a higher stone and rock content

Q: How does soil with a high water content affect ripening?
A: It delays it, as it takes more energy to heat the soil and heat from the vines is conducted away more quickly

Q: How does aspect affect ripening? Give an example of a region which benefits particularly from a good aspect...
A: The side of a slope facing towards the equator receives more sunlight and heat.
The Mosel Valley.

Q: How is continentality defined?
A: It is the temperature difference between winter and summer

Q: What is the main factor affecting continentality? Why?
A: Proximity of large bodies of water.
They cool down and heat up slower than land masses.

Q: Name the four main inputs required for a vine
A: Heat
Sunlight
Water
Nutrients

Q: What gives a vine heat?
A: Sunlight and soil

Q: Where does a vine get light from?
A: The sun and the soil

Q: How does a vine get water?
A: Rainfall, irrigation and water stored in soil/bedrock

Q: Where does a vine get its nutrients?
A: Soil deposits
Bedrock
Humus
Fertiliser

Q: What's the biggest factor that can influence diurnal range?
A: Seas and lakes

Q: What can affect levels of cloud cover?
A: Smaller bodies of water

Q: What two positive effects do cool nights have on a vineyard?
A: They help the vines rest, extending the growing seasonThey help slow the loss of volatile aromas

Q: What effect do warm nights have on a vineyard?
A: They help to accelerate ripening, particularly the production of sugar

Q: What kind of wines do regions with a high diurnal range generally create?
A: Fresher and more aromatic

Q: What is the impact on wine of a smaller diurnal range?
A: They are usually fuller bodied

Q: What is Winter Freeze?
A: When the temp drops below -20 deg C. This can damage or kill a vine

Q: The part of a vine most at risk during winter freeze is...
A: The graft callus

Q: How can graft calluses be protected during winter freeze?
A: By covering up the callus with soil (sometimes the whole vine)

Q: What is Spring frost?
A: Cold air below 0 deg C collecting at ground level and freezing any settled water vapour

Q: What happens to a vine during spring frosts?
A: Newly burst buds or shoots are killed by frost

Q: What are the four main methods of protection against frost?
A: Burners
Wind machines
Sprinklers
Vineyard design

Q: What are burners/smudge pots?
A: The heat they generate creates movement in the air, preventing cold air from settling and causing frost.Smudge pots also generate smoke, insulating heat from the vineyard

Q: Why/how do sprinklers work in frost protection?
A: When their water freezes, it releases latent heat, protecting buds and shoots

Q: How can thoughtful vineyard design help to protect against frost?
A: By planting crops away from depressions, you will avoid the worst of potential frosts.Vines can also be trained high.

Q: What impact can a mild winter have on a vine?
A: It can prevent the vine from being dormant, and in the worst cases, the vine can produce more than one crop a year, shortening the vine's life and reducing its quality

Q: How else can mild winters be bad for viticulture?
A: Larger populations of pests can survive to attack the vines in the following summer

Q: What negative effects can high summer temperatures have on a vine? What if there's insufficient water too?
A: They accelerate ripening, altering the grapes' compositions and changing the styles of the wine. When water is low, the vine may stop ripening its grapes, it may shed its leaves and even die

Q: What limits the RATE of photosynthesis?
A: Light levels

Q: The more...the greater the amount of glucose the leaves produce for growth and grapes
A: Light

Q: Name an area where sugar levels will remain low due to cloud cover
A: Hunter Valley, Australia

Q: What can happen to grapes if it is too sunny?
A: They can become sunburnt, resulting in bitter dark patches on grapes

Q: Name the three factors affecting sunlight...
A: Seas and Lakes
Latitude
Aspect

Q: Explain how proximity to large bodies of water can affect sunlight...
A: Vineyards near seas and lakes tend to experience more cloud cover.Sometimes vineyards situated above rivers and lakes can benefit from reflected sunlight.

Q: Explain the effect of latitude on sunlight. Give two places which benefit from this effect...
A: Day length during the summer season is longer, the further away from the equator a vineyard is.
Germany (Riesling) and Washington State (Cabernet)

Q: Which elements of aspect are favourable for the ripening of grapes?
A: Steeper slopes and facing toward the equator

Q: Where in the world is sun exposure most important and why?
A: Furthest away from the equator as the sun's energy is weaker here

Q: What is a grapevine's natural habitat?
A: Woodland, where they would flower and fruit when they broke through the canopy

Q: What is the biological benefit of a grapevine only bearing fruit once it has broken woodland canopy?
A: Here its fruits would be more visible to animals, ready for propagation

Q: Under what light conditions are buds less fruitful?
A: In shade

Q: What is used to ensure the ripening of grapes in areas with less light exposure?
A: Canopy management techniques

Q: What can the effect of exceptionally cloudy conditions be on wine?
A: Low levels of alcohol, unripe tannins and flavours

Q: How can poor light conditions affect crops?
A: Crops may reduce

Q: Name the three uses a vine has for water...
A: It gives rigidity to shoots and leaves
Regulates its temperature
Swells its grapes

Q: What is transpiration?
A: How a vine accesses water through its roots and draws it up to its leaves

Q: What determines the amount of water a vine uses?
A: Temperature

Q: Why is water stress beneficial to grape ripening?
A: The vine has enough water to photosynthesise, but switches its glucose resources from shoot growth to grape ripening

Q: What can be disrupted by rainfall?
A: Flowering and fruit set

Q: What encourages fungal infection?
A: Damp conditions after rainfall

Q: What is the potential impact of heavy rain shortly before harvest? How does this impact resulting wines?
A: Berries can swell, diluting flavours in the wines they produce

Q: What can be used if rainfall is insufficient?
A: Irrigation

Q: What are the three main irrigation techniques?
A: Drip irrigation
Sprinklers
Flood irrigation

Q: What is drip irrigation?
A: The most advanced and expensive form of irrigation.
Each vine has its own dripper that can be computer controlled, ensuring that each vine gets an optimal amount of water.

Q: What are the benefits and disadvantages of sprinklers as a form of irrigation?
A: They are a lot cheaper than drip irrigation, but they waste a lot of water and create damp conditions like rainfall, increasing disease-risk

Q: What is the benefit of flood irrigation? What are the barriers? Give two examples of where it can be/is used...
A: It's very cheap, but only possible in flat or gently sloping vineyards where there is access to large quantities of water.
Chile and Argentina.

Q: What can happen during short term drought?
A: The vine can temporarily stop transpiration, preserving its resources

Q: What happens if the vine has access to too much water during the growing season?
A: It promotes excessive vegetative growth

Q: What effect does it have on grapes if a vine becomes vegetatively overactive?
A: This diverts sugars from the ripening grapes.Also the excess of shoots and leaves increases the risk of shading.

Q: What effect can summer hail have on a vine?
A: It can damage the grapes and even the vine itself, in worst cases, destroying an entire crop

Q: Name an area particularly prone to hail...
A: Mendoza, Argentina

Q: List three preventative measures against hail...
A: Netting, aircrafts and rockets

Q: When is the growing season in the northern/Southern Hemisphere?
A: April - October and October - April

Q: When typically does the temperature rapidly drop in a continental climate?
A: Autumn

Q: What kind of varieties are best suited to cool continental climates?
A: Ones that bud late and ripen early

Q: What climates experience very dry summers?
A: Continental

Q: When does it rain the most in a maritime climate?
A: It rains evenly throughout the year

Q: What effect does the year-round rain in a maritime climate have on other climatic features?
A: It moderates sunlight and temperature

Q: How does a maritime climate affect the length of a growing season?
A: It lengthens it as a result of its moderating effects

Q: Name the biggest hazards of a maritime climate
A: Spring and summer rains, which can be a very significant risk to the flowering, fruit set and health of the grapes at harvest

Q: What is Humus?
A: Organic matter

Q: What are the three major components of soil?
A: Soil particles, stones and rocks
Humus
Plant nutrients

Q: What are the largest types of soil particle?
A: Sand

Q: What are the smallest soil particles?
A: Clay

Q: What kind of particle size makes up the best soils?
A: A mixture of sizes

Q: What are the benefits of Humus?
A: It is rich in plant nutrients and had excellent water retaining properties

Q: What are the three key plant nutrients?
A: Nitrogen, Phosphorus and Potassium

Q: Where do plant nutrients come from?
A: Decaying plant material
Manure
Dissolved mineral salts

Q: Describe the ideal soil for viticulture
A: It has relatively few nutrients and is well drained, but able to store enough water to support the vine through the growing season

Q: How should water supply to a vine ideally vary over the growing season?
A: A good supply early on to support growth, then water stress after veraison to benefit ripening

Q: How is water stored in the soil?
A: By binding with clay particles or humus. It may be accessible in the underlying rock, too.

Q: What will happen to a vine exposed to too-high levels of nutrients?
A: It will grow too vigorously

Q: What is the most common symptom linked to nutrient deficiency?
A: Chlorosis

Q: What is Chlorosis?
A: The leaves turning yellow because they lose chlorophyll. Photosynthesis reduces and grape quality/yield is affected.

Q: What's the most common cause of Chlorosis? What sort of soil is most likely to cause this?
A: The inability of a vine to gain sufficient iron from the soil.Soils with high limestone content.

Q: Give examples of places with soils high in limestone
A: Barolo, Burgundy, Rioja and Champagne

Q: Which two components in food that can make a wine seem to taste harder?
A: Sweetness and Umami

Q: What are the most important species in modern viticulture?
A: Vitis Vinifera American vines

Q: Which vine species produces nearly all the grapes used in winemaking?
A: Vitis Vinifera

Q: Why are American vines rarely used to produce grapes for winemaking?
A: Their grapes are widely considered to have unattractive flavours

Q: Why are American grapevine species important?
A: They are resistant to Phylloxera and consequently widely used to produce rootstocks onto which Vinifera vines are grafted

Q: What are the principal differences between grape varieties?
A: Colour and flavour

Q: What other factors may a grape grower be concerned with when selecting a grape variety?
A: Budding and ripening timesResistance to certain diseases

Q: Which two methods may a grower use to preserve the unique qualities of a grape variety?
A: CuttingLayering

Q: What is a cutting?
A: A section of a vine shoot that is planted and then grows as a new plant

Q: Which method of growing new plants is most commonly used in commercial nurseries?
A: Cutting

Q: Where does layering take place?
A: In the vineyard

Q: Describe layering
A: A cane is bent down and a section of it is buried in the ground, the cane tip points upwards out of the ground.The buried section takes root and when this happens, the linking cane is cut.

Q: Which propagation method is more common? Why?
A: CuttingDue to the risk of phylloxera

Q: How can several plants be identified as one variety?
A: They can all trace their lineage back through a series of cuttings and/or layering to a single plant

Q: What other term can be used for vine variety?
A: Grape variety

Q: Which word can be used instead of variety?
A: Cultivar

Q: Why may there still be variations between vines despite their being technically the same variety?
A: Mutations sometimes occur when the vines grow

Q: Which vines are more likely to be selected for further propagation?
A: Those which have developed positive/beneficial mutations

Q: What is clonal selection?
A: Choosing individual vines with beneficial mutations

Q: Each individual vine or group of vines that shows a particular set of unique characteristics is known as a ...
A: Clone

Q: What will a grape grower often specify when ordering new plants from a nursery?
A: The clone as well as the variety

Q: List two varieties which are the result of more extreme mutations from Pinot Noir?
A: Pinot Gris and Pinot Blanc

Q: What is cross-fertilisation?
A: A method of creating a new variety under controlled conditions

Q: Describe cross-fertilisation
A: Pollen from the male part of the flower of one Vine is transferred to the female part of the flower of another vine and fertilisation occurs. The pollinated flowers develops into a grape with seeds. If the seed is planted and grows, it will be a new variety.

Q: Can a grape's characteristics be predicted when cross pollination occurs?
A: No, there is no way of knowing

Q: Why is it costly and time-consuming to create a new variety?
A: Hundreds of seeds are requiredMany seedlings fail in the first yearProducers must wait 2-3 years before the survivors flower and produce fruitIt takes longer to prove the value of the new variety

Q: How is a crossing defined?
A: A new variety which is produced from two parents of the same species

Q: Give an example of a crossing
A: Cabernet Sauvignon (Cab Franc x Sauvignon Blanc)

Q: What is a hybrid?
A: A vine whose parents come from two different vine species

Q: What are hybrids and American vine crossings most commonly used for?
A: Rootstocks

Q: What is Phylloxera?
A: An insect that is native to North America which Vinifera is unable to defend itself against

Q: What caused wholesale destruction of European vineyards in the nineteenth century?
A: Phylloxera when it was accidentally introduced

Q: ...has a very complex lifecycle
A: Phylloxera

Q: What is the most harmful phase of Phylloxera's lifecycle to a vine? What happens?
A: When it lives underground and feeds on the roots of the vine. Infection enters through the feeding wound, weakening and eventually killing the vine.

Q: How do American varieties protect themselves against Phylloxera?
A: They clog the aphid's mouth with a sticky sap and form a protective layer behind the feeding wounds to prevent secondary infection

Q: What was the only protection against Phylloxera when it first hit Europe?
A: American species or hybrids

Q: Give two other advantages to some rootstocks other than resistance to Phylloxera
A: Protection against NematodesDrought resistance

Q: What is grafting?
A: It is the technique used to join a rootstock to a Vinifera variety

Q: What is the most popular modern grafting technique?
A: Bench grafting

Q: What does bench grafting involve?
A: Short sections of cane from both varieties are joined together by machine and stored in a warm environment to encourage fusion

Q: What is the less common type of grafting?
A: Head grafting

Q: When is head grafting used?
A: When a grape grower with an established vineyard decides to switch to different variety between seasons

Q: How is head grafting performed?
A: The existing vine is cut back to its trunk A bud or cutting of the new variety is grafted onto the trunk

Q: What are the biggest advantages of head grafting?
A: The new variety will grow in the forthcoming season (much quicker)It's much cheaper than replanting a whole vineyard

Q: What can be used to protect a graft join?
A: Wax

Q: What are leaves principally responsible for?
A: Photosynthesis

Q: Summarise photosynthesis
A: The process by which plants use sunlight to convert water and carbon dioxide into glucose and oxygen

Q: Describe buds
A: Form in the join between the leaf and the shootThey mature inside their casing, so that eventually they contain miniature all the structures that will become the shoot, leaves, flowers and tendrils

Q: Describe tendrils
A: Tendrils allow the vine to support itself by wrapping around a structure

Q: What are flowers?
A: The reproductive organs of the vine
It has male and female parts
It's grouped in bunches called inflorescences

Q: Describe berries
A: Each flower that is successfully pollinated, becomes a berry, so the inflorescences become bunches of grapes, which have evolved to be attractive to animals (encouraging dispersion)

Q: When do shoots turn woody?
A: During the winter after they have grown

Q: When do buds burst?
A: The spring after they have formed

Q: Why is it important to manage one year old wood?
A: Because vines will normally only produce fruit on shoots that grow from buds that developed the year before

Q: When is the vine usually pruned?
A: Every winter

Q: What is a cane?
A: One year old wood which is left with 8-20 buds

Q: What is a spur?
A: One year old wood which is left with 2-3 buds after pruning

Q: What is permanent wood?
A: Wood that is more than one year old

Q: Where is the permanent wood on the vine usually?
A: The trunk and the arms

Q: What are the functions of the roots?
A: To absorb water and nutrients from the soilTo anchor the vineTo store carbohydrates for the winter

Q: What are the three main considerations a producer may need to make when choosing a site?
A: Environmental conditionsBusiness considerationsGrape variety

Q: Which environmental conditions does a producer have to consider?
A: Average temperatureRainfallSunlightSoil fertilityDrainage

Q: What business considerations must be made by a producer when selecting a vineyard site?
A: Proximity to utility infrastructure (power, water etc.)Availability of a vineyard workforceAccessibility for machineryCost of land

Q: What must a producer consider regarding grape variety when selecting a site?
A: It must suit climatic conditionsDemandLegal restrictions

Q: How is a new vineyard prepared?
A: Existing vegetation is clearedFertility tested (and corrected with fertiliser if necessary)Young vines are planted by hand or machineVines protected from animals with plastic sleevesIrrigation allowed to help young vines establish themselves

Q: Why is irrigation allowed in some places after new vines have been planted?
A: To allow the vines to establish themselves

Q: When does a vine's first yield usually come?
A: In the third year after planting

Q: At what age on average are vines usually replaced?
A: 30 - 50 years

Q: What is the main factor that makes old vines desirable?
A: They give a greater concentration of flavours

Q: What are the potential disadvantages to growing an old vine?
A: Lower yieldSusceptibility to disease

Q: What are the four main techniques used to manage a vine?
A: TrainingPruningTrellisingPlanting density

Q: The grower will adapt the four main vineyard management techniques to suit the availability of these resources:
A: TemperatureSunlightWaterSoil nutrients

Q: Name a practical consideration a grower may have to make when establishing a vineyard
A: Use of machinery

Q: What is the ultimate goal of a grape-grower?
A: To maximise the production of fruit at the desired quality level as economically as possible

Q: What is vine training?
A: The shape of the permanent wood of the vine

Q: What are the two principal branches of vine training?
A: Head trainingCordon training

Q: Both head training and cordon training can be...to benefit from heat retained by the soil or...to avoid frosts
A: Low trainedHigh trained

Q: Describe a head-trained vine
A: They have very little permanent woodSome have only a trunkSome have a few arms protruding from the trunkThey can be spur-pruned or replacement cane pruned

Q: Describe a vine which is cordon trained
A: A trunk with one or two arms of permanent woodUsually spur pruned

Q: Describe a positive and negative of cordon training a vine
A: The sturdy permanent cordon with shoots positioned along its length, makes mechanisation easierIt can take longer to establish because of the greater amount of permanent wood

Q: Cordon training can also be used to create...
A: Big vine structures

Q: What is pruning?
A: The removal of unwanted leaves, canes and permanent wood

Q: What is the purpose of pruning?
A: It shapes the vine and limits its size

Q: When does pruning typically take place?
A: Every summer and every winter

Q: What is the main purpose of winter pruning?
A: To determine the number and location of buds that will form shoots in the coming season

Q: Why is it important to ensure that buds are not too close together?
A: To help with canopy management

Q: What are the two styles of winter pruning?
A: Spur pruningReplacement cane pruning

Q: Describe spur pruning
A: Spurs are either distributed along a cordon or around the top of the trunk

Q: Describe replacement cane pruning
A: Typically one or two canes are retainedEach cane is tied horizontally to the trellis for supportMost common on head-trained vines

Q: What are the two main disadvantages to replacement cane pruning?
A: It requires a large, skilled workforce to choose suitable canes and train themIt is more complex than spur pruning

Q: What is the alternative name for replacement cane pruning?
A: Guyot training

Q: What does summer pruning involve?
A: Trimming the canopy to restrict vegetative growth and direct sugar production to the grapeIt can involve leaf stripping so that bunches have optimal exposure to the sun

Q: What is a vine's 'canopy'?
A: All green parts of the vine

Q: What is a grower's most important concern when considering canopy management?
A: Whether to trellis

Q: What is a trellis?
A: A permanent structure of stakes and wires, used to support any replacement canes and the vine's annual growth

Q: What is a bush vine?
A: The vines do not have a trellis system and the shoots can hang down as far as the groundThey are head-trained and spur pruned

Q: What kind of climate is a bush-trained vine most suited to? Give two examples...
A: Warm/hot, dry, sunnySouthern RhôneBarossa Valley

Q: Why is bush-training unsuitable for cool or wet regions?
A: The shade can impede grape ripeningLack of airflow can promote disease

Q: Describe vines in Beaujolais
A: They are head-trained and spur-prunedThe buds are tied together at the tips, helping to expose bunches to air and sunlight

Q: What kind of vines are not suitable for mechanical harvesting?
A: Untrellised

Q: Give another name for bush-training
A: Gobelet

Q: Describe the two main aspects of trellised vineyards What is their collective term?
A: Each row of vines requires a line of posts joined by horizontal wiresCanes and shoots are tied to the trellisCanopy management

Q: What are the three important reasons for canopy management?
A: To control the amount of sunlight that gets to the canopyTo improve air circulationTo aid mechanisation

Q: How does trellising aid mechanisation?
A: It separates leaves from grapes

Q: What is the secondary benefit of separating leaves and fruit?
A: Spraying of insecticides and fungicides is more effective

Q: What is the most widely used trellising system?
A: Vertical Shoot Positioning (VSP)

Q: Describe VSP
A: Shoots are trained vertically and tied in place onto the trellis

Q: Why might a grape grower choose adapted VSP over bush vine training?
A: It allows for mechanisation

Q: How is planting density measured?
A: It is the number of vines planted in a given area

Q: What is a hectare?
A: An area enclosed by a square with 100m sides

Q: What is the rough range of planting densities?
A: 1,000 - 10,000 vines per hectare

Q: How does an acre relate to a hectare?
A: One acre is approximately 0.4 hectares

Q: Name a very important set of criteria when deciding on planting density
A: Availability of nutrients and water

Q: Explain the most advantageous planting density considerations for areas with limited water availability
A: Low planting density allows each vine's roots to take up water from a larger volume of soil without any competition

Q: Explain the effect on a vine of having low levels of nutrients but sufficient water?
A: It can still grow vigorously and produce lots of vegetative growth in preference to fruit

Q: How may pruning be used to affect vine vigour in a well watered area? Describe why accuracy is important
A: Careful winter pruning can affect vine vigourToo few buds left means the buds will have too much energy in the form of carbohydrates and will grow too vigorously and vice versa

Q: What are the two human-controlled factors in the vineyard which can affect vine vigour?
A: Planting densityPruning

Q: What is the problem for a winemaker when there is ample rainfall and very fertile soils?
A: Vines can be overly vigorous Pruning and planting density are often not enough

Q: What is an additional practice which can be used when planting density and pruning aren't enough to reduce vigour sufficiently?
A: Vines may be planted at low density with multiple cordons or canes

Q: What is yield?
A: A measure of the amount of grapes produced

Q: In what units may yield be measured?
A: Weight Volume

Q: What are the three principal reasons why a winemaker may need to know yield?
A: Legal requirementsContractual obligationsPredicting tank space

Q: How may yield be approximately predicted?
A: By observing the number of buds left on a vine after winter pruning

Q: Which factors may make predicting yield difficult/inaccurate?
A: Frost damagePoor fruit setPests and diseases

Q: How may yields be reduced by the winemaker?
A: By removing immature grapes shortly after véraison

Q: What is the process of removing immature grapes after véraison called?
A: Green harvesting

Q: Why must green harvesting be carefully timed?
A: If done at the wrong time, the vine will compensate for the loss by increasing the size of the grapes that have been retained, causing flavour dilution and a re-increase of yield

Q: What effect does yield have on grape quality?
A: No discernible effect

Q: What are the broad potential effects of pests and diseases?
A: Reduced yield Reduced fruit quality

Q: What effect does leaf-damage have on a vine?
A: It reduces photosynthesis and consequently limits the vine's ripening ability

Q: What are nematodes?
A: Microscopic worms that attack the roots of the vine, interfering with water and nutrient uptake

Q: What is the other effect a nematode can have other than interfering with nutrient/water uptake?
A: Transmitting vine diseases

Q: What is the best treatment for nematodes?
A: Prevention

Q: How may nematodes be effectively prevented?
A: Sanitising the soil before replantingUsing resistant rootstocks

Q: What are the two biggest problems when it comes to birds and mammals?
A: They can eat large numbers of grapesHalf eaten/crushed grapes are more susceptible to fungal disease

Q: How are birds and mammals deterred?
A: Nets and fences

Q: What do insects do to a vine?
A: Feed on grapes and leaves

Q: How is the problem of insects treated?
A: With insecticide sprays or integrated pest management

Q: What kind of environment do downy and powdery mildew thrive in?
A: Warm, humid environments

Q: Which parts of the vine can downy and powdery mildew attack?
A: All green parts

Q: What effect does it have on a wine if attacked by mildew?
A: Grapes lose their fruity flavourThe wine develops a mouldy, bitter taint

Q: What is grey rot caused by?
A: The fungus Botrytis Cinerea

Q: In what conditions does grey rot thrive?
A: Damp conditions

Q: Which part of the vine does grey rot attack?
A: Grapes

Q: What effect can grey rot have on black grapes?
A: They can lose their colour

Q: What is noble rot?
A: The name for grey rot when it has been used for winemaking

Q: How was powdery mildew traditionally treated?
A: With a sulphur-based spray

Q: How was downy mildew traditionally treated?
A: With Bordeaux Mixture - a copper based spray

Q: How is spraying most commonly done?
A: By tractor

Q: Why must spraying stop close to harvest?
A: So that there are no harmful chemical residues in the wine

Q: Explain how canopy management may reduce the chance of fungal disease
A: An open vine canopy allows greater flow of air, promoting evaporation and keeping it dry

Q: What's the big advantage of preventing fungal disease with only canopy management?
A: It's financially and environmentally beneficial, as sprays are not needed

Q: What do viruses do to a vine?
A: The reduce its ability to function

Q: How do viruses affect wine?
A: They can dramatically reduce yield and quality

Q: How are viruses usually spread among vines?
A: Via cutting or nematodes

Q: What treatments are there for vine viruses?
A: None

Q: How can viruses be eradicated?
A: By digging up vines and sanitising the land

Q: How do bacterial diseases affect vines?
A: Many just reduce grape quality and quantity, but some can kill the vines

Q: How are bacterial diseases usually spread?
A: By small insects called sharpshooters

Q: How may bacterial diseases be treated or cured?
A: They can't

Q: How can bacterial diseases be prevented?
A: Strict quarantine procedures and interrupting the lifecycle of the sharpshooters

Q: How may bacterial diseases be eradicated?
A: Digging up vines and sanitising the land

Q: What viticultural practice took off in the second half of the twentieth century?
A: The use of man made sprays/chemicals to control pests and diseasesAn increased use of fertilisers

Q: Why has chemical spraying become a concern?
A: It damages the environment

Q: What are the three main options available to those wanting to reduce chemical spraying?
A: Sustainable agricultureOrganic agricultureBiodynamic agriculture

Q: Are man-made chemicals prohibited in sustainable agriculture?
A: No

Q: What is another possible name for sustainable agriculture when related specifically to pests?
A: Integrated Pest Management

Q: How may pest numbers be controlled during IPM?
A: By encouraging the presence of the pests' natural predators

Q: What is organic agriculture?
A: Similar to sustainable agriculture, but with only a limited number of the traditional treatments against pests and diseases and in smaller quantities It is a set of accredited practices

Q: What is the one main rule all organic vineyards must follow to be accredited?
A: They need to undergo a period of conversion before they can be certified

Q: Who founded Biodynamic Agriculture?
A: Rudolf Steiner and Maria Thun

Q: How does a vineyard officially become biodynamic?
A: By being certified

Q: When does budburst occur in the northern and Southern Hemispheres?
A: March - AprilSeptember - October

Q: When does early shoot and leaf growth occur in the northern and Southern Hemispheres?
A: March - MaySeptember - November

Q: Where does flowering and fruit set occur in the northern and Southern Hemispheres?
A: May - JuneNovember - December

Q: When does Véraison and berry ripening occur in the northern and Southern Hemispheres?
A: July - SeptemberJanuary - March

Q: When does harvest occur in the northern and Southern Hemispheres?
A: September - OctoberMarch - April

Q: When is winter dormancy in the northern and Southern Hemispheres?
A: December - MarchJuly - September

Q: At what mean temperature does budburst generally begin?
A: 10C

Q: The temperature at which budburst occurs depends on...
A: Grape variety

Q: Name two varieties which bud at relatively low temperatures. Give another name for this...
A: Chardonnay and Pinot NoirEarly-budding varieties

Q: Name one variety which buds at relatively high temperatures. Give another name for this...
A: Cabernet SauvignonA late-budding variety

Q: What is the biggest risk to budburst?
A: Spring frosts

Q: What practice begins at budburst?
A: Spraying

Q: Describe what happens during 'early shoot and leaf growth'? How is energy provided for this?
A: Shoots grow rapidly until the vine flowers
Initially fuelled by stored carbohydrate reserves
Energy provided partially by leaves as they grow and begin to photosynthesise

Q: When are water and nutrients most important during a plant's lifecycle?
A: Early shoot and leaf growth

Q: What does the vine most need during flowering? Why?
A: Warm temperatures
Plenty of sunshine
Little or no rain
Pollination may be disrupted, reducing fruit-set

Q: What is fruit set? What else occurs?
A: When a flower develops into a grape
Unpollinated flowers drop off

Q: What is it called when more flowers than normal fail to fertilise?
A: Coulure

Q: What is Millerandage?
A: When grapes form without seeds and remain small

Q: What is the outcome of Coulure or Millerandage?
A: Reduced yields

Q: What is generally the cause of Millerandage and Coulure?
A: Cold, cloudy or rainy weather during pollination

Q: How long do grapes grow before veraison?
A: 6 - 8 weeks

Q: What is véraison? Describe it
A: The point at which grapes begin to ripenSkin changes colour

Q: What occurs between Véraison and ripening?
A: Grapes swell and fill with waterSugar levels rise, acid levels dropColour pigments and flavour compounds accumulateTannins develop

Q: What conditions are ideal for ripening?
A: Warm and sunny conditionsMild water stress to inhibit shoot growth and encourage grape ripening

Q: What processes may happen during berry ripening? What is the purpose?
A: Summer pruningGreen harvestingSummer pruning removes excess foliage, ensuring the canopy remains openGreen harvesting controls yield and improves fruit quality

Q: What conditions are ideal for harvest? Why?
A: DryExcess rainfall before harvest can cause the grapes to swell, diluting flavour Chances of rot are increased too

Q: When must spraying finish?
A: A reasonable time before harvest to ensure there are no harmful residues in the wine

Q: What happens naturally during winter dormancy?
A: Shoots become woodyLeaves fallThe vine stores carbohydrates in its roots

Q: What effect can winter freeze have on a vine?
A: Buds can dieThe vine can die

Q: How may a vine be protected from winter freeze?
A: By piling earth up around the vine

Q: What may a grape grower do during winter dormancy?
A: Winter pruning

Q: How is Véraison defined?
A: The point at which grapes begin to ripen

Q: What signals the start of Véraison?
A: A change in colour of the grapes' skin

Q: What happens to the colours of black and white grapes during Véraison?
A: Black grapes turn red, then purpleWhite grapes turn translucent and golden

Q: What happens within grapes as they ripen?
A: Sugar levels rise and acid levels drop

Q: How is the ripening process in a grape tracked?
A: Monitoring the rise in sugar levels

Q: What else may happen within a grape as acid levels drop and sugar levels rise?
A: The grapes will develop their signature flavoursTannins in the grape skins become less bitter and astringent

Q: When does harvest ideally begin?
A: When the vigneron believes the grapes have the exact qualities needed to create the desired style of wine

Q: What may cause a winemaker to bring the harvest forward?
A: Poor weather conditions

Q: What does hail do to crops?
A: Destroys them

Q: What can rain do to crops?
A: Cause the grapes to swell excessively and dilute the juice

Q: Why do winemakers need to coordinate the arrival of fruit at the winery?
A: To make sure it is not suddenly overwhelmed with fruit it does not have the capacity to process

Q: How is harvesting done?
A: By hand or machine

Q: Name the main factors which dictate how a vineyard should be harvested
A: How the vineyard is plantedLabour availability/costVineyard topographyWeather conditionsWinemaking choices

Q: How must premium wine be harvested?
A: By machine or hand

Q: How do machine harvesters work?
A: By shaking the trunk of the vine and collecting the ripe berries as they fall off, leaving the stalks behind

Q: What are the major disadvantages/difficulties of machine harvesting?
A: They are unselective, often collecting unhealthy, damaged and unripe grapes, as well as bits of leaf, insects and other contaminantsThey can only be used on flat or gently sloping landThey are best suited to varieties whose grapes are not easily damaged and come away easily from their stemsThey cannot be used for wines whose grapes need to be picked in whole bunches

Q: What is MOG?
A: Matter Other than GrapesUnwanted contaminants collected often by machines during harvest

Q: How are MOG dealt with during harvest?
A: They can be removed at the winery during sorting

Q: When might it not be possible to sort out MOG?
A: Some harvesting operations are too large