Biodiversity of Sardinian grapevine collection: Agronomical and physiological characterization

The experiment was carried out in 2010-11 in a 4-year-old experimental vineyard located near Oristano (Sardinia, Italy). Fourteen traditional Sardinian cultivars, most of them listed in the Italian National Register of cultivars of grapevine, and the international cultivar Cabernet Sauvignon, were planted following a randomized complete block design. Sixteen vines plot-1were evaluated for bud fertility, grapevine growth, yield and its components. From fruit set until harvest, on clear sky days, vine physiological status was monitored by measuring leaf gas exchange and midday stem water potential. From veraison to harvest, berries were randomly collected every two weeks in order to assess the evolution of fruit composition. Regarding the ecophysiological characterization, measurement of gas exchange on vines subjected to water stress, allowed to differentiate the cultivars according to their water use efficiency. For all cultivars and mainly for the less-used ones, the evaluation of must composition during ripening shows the best harvest time to obtain suitable composition for oenological varietal or blended products and improve colour or acidity.