Smoke-taint research points to broader grapevine stress responses

SevenFifty Daily’s October 1 report examines how studying smoke-stressed grapevines could lead to new ways to protect grapes and treat wine. Scientists have linked the reappearance of smoke taint to protective measures triggered when vines are under smoke stress. Jennifer Mortimer, Ph.D., a professor of plant synthetic biology at Adelaide University, suggests that vines’ broader response to smoke includes glycosylation beyond the GT1 enzyme family. The report highlights the value of further research into these responses across a range of grape varieties.