News from Cornell's Viticulture and Enology Program, March 2020
RESEARCH FOCUS
The Chemistry of Canned Wines
Wines packaged in aluminum beverage cans are increasingly popular, but producers report issues with canned wines occasionally developing hydrogen sulfide "off aromas". Cornell chemist Gavin Sacks reviews possible causes and outlines future research questions.
FACULTY FOCUS
Five Questions for Katie Gold
Katie Gold recently arrived at Cornell AgriTech as our new Assistant Professor of Grape Disease Ecology and Epidemiology, after spending six months as a visiting Cornell Faculty Fellow at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, CA.
STUDENT FOCUS
V&E Majors Pioneer New Internship in Portugal
Cornell Viticulture and Enology undergraduates Lauren Marigliano ('20) and Julia Schwartz ('21) completed summer internships in Portugal, advancing their viticultural knowledge and skills.
GRAPES 101
Missing Parts: The cost of missing cordons, canes, and vines
We surveyed 61 Finger Lakes vineyards in 2019 to find out how many missing cordons, buds, and vines there were in each block, and what these 'missing parts' might be costing growers.
RESEARCH IN PLAIN ENGLISH
X-ray imaging allows nondestructive investigation of grape bud morphology and freezing
The use of microtomography (3D X-ray imaging) allowed Grad student Al Kovaleski and USDA scientist Jason Londo to track changes in bud structure during deacclimation and freezing events.
AWARDS
Congratulations Hans Walter-Peterson!
At the New York Wine and Grape Foundation's Unity Awards Luncheon on February 26th, 2020, Hans Walter-Peterson received the 'Research Award', for his many accomplishments in 19 years as viticulture extension specialist with the Lake Erie Regional Grape Extension program and the Finger Lakes Grape Program.
Cornell Student and Sheldrake Point Vineyard Worker win Second Annual Finger Lakes FELCO Pruning Competition
On January 31st professionals and students alike gathered at Anthony Road Vineyards to compete at the annual FELCO pruning competition, organized for the last two years by Ryan Amberg and Russell Moss. New York native and Cornell Viticulture student, Austin Fingar, dominated the student category against students hailing from as far away as Michigan. José Aquilera, of Sheldrake Point Winery, took the win in the professional category among 30 competitors. Both will be headed to Switzerland for the 75th anniversary of the FELCO Company and Dave will compete in a global pruning competition.
NEWS BRIEFS
-
Ways UV Light is Exposing Fruit Pests and Pathogens
Cornell AgriTech researcher David Gadoury and his team's efforts in using UV light to control diseases and insect pests are featured in the February issue of 'Growing Produce'. -
Grant funds high-tech system to improve grapevine pruning
The Cornell Chronicle interviewed Justine Vanden Heuvel and Yu Jiang about their recently acquired grant to use multispectral imaging to determine bud mortality and recommend winter pruning strategies. -
Twelve Pennsylvania Counties added to Spotted Lanternfly Quarantine
On March 3, the Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture and Markets announced it was adding 12 counties to the original 13-county Spotted Lanternfly quarantine zone.
FEATURED VIDEO
Watch a bud freeze. This video shows the expansion of a grape bud during the process of freezing. This imagery showed that the freezing event begins at the center and propagates outward. You can learn more about this phenomenon and technique in this issue's RIPE summary or in this paper by Al Kovaleski and Jason Londo
