wine research
The state vineyard is an integral part of the Freiburg state wine research institute, and it serves as a practical laboratory for the institute’s researchers.
The institute, in turn, has the following principal functions:
• Applied research in viticulture and viniculture
• Knowledge transfer through expert seminars, tours, publications (including for today’s growers), consulting and other media
• Advice to the public and private sectors on the wine business, administration and policy
• Para-governmental duties in quality control and market administration, Weinfonds, selection and health checks on plant material, herbicides and insecticides
• Support for trainees and for academic work at institutes of higher learning (up to doctorate level).
The institute’s primary goals are:
• Wine quality optimization
• Economic improvement in the wine industry
• Sustainability. The institute’s activities are structured into three main departments: biology, oenology and viticulture.
The biology department focuses on:
• Sustainable processes to ensure grape quality and grape yield
• Organic approaches to protect vines from disease and insect pests
• Improved biodiversity in vineyards and neighbouring landscape zones
• Continued development and maintenance of a forecasting system to support specific and sustainable plant protection in viticulture
• Diagnosis of disease vectors and vine pests
• Practical measures against invasive organisms in growing areas.
The oenology department focuses on:
• Quality improvement and experimentation with new oenological techniques
• Research on treatment methods, substances and preservation methods
• Wine microbiology, fermentation and secondary (malolactic) fermentation
• Assays of pure-bred yeasts, starter cultures and enzyme preparations
• Microvinification of experimental wines
• Experiments in wine chemistry
• Specific analysis of aromatic compounds in fruit juice and wine.
The viticulture department focuses on:
• Identification of mildew-resistant white and red wine grape varieties, incorporating recommendations on planting and processing for wine regions around the world.
• Culture and breeding refinement of standard vine varieties with particular emphasis on pinots, vines grown for their fragrance and Unterlagsrebsorten
• Development of integrated, organic and other environmentally efficient production methods of vineyard management
• Testing of vine-pruning Erziehungsformen
• Methods for estimating and influencing harvest yields.
The institute achieves a high level of research through a variety of international cooperation, both within Germany and further afield, allied with good communication between departments internally. We are committed to keeping the end consumer in mind as the final judge of our work. The state vineyard manages the vineyards on behalf of the research communities, produces experimental and commercial wines.