Peculiarities of the Organic Wine in Galicia (NW Spain): Sensory Evaluation and Future Considerations

Abstract

Although wine is one of the most studied beverages at a sensory level, there is practically no information on the particularities of organic wines from Galicia. Considering that different regions provide distinctive characteristics to wines, organic and conventional wines from the five Designations of Origin (DO) from Galicia were analyzed at chemical and sensory levels. Sensory analysis showed that organic cultivation favors distinctive quality wines. Organic wines obtained similar scores to conventional wines in the preference tests and, in some cases, they were preferred by the tasters. However, this was not the case with wines produced in climatologically unfavorable seasons. Differences between conventional and organic wines were strongly marked by other factors such as the vintage, the DO, the winemaking techniques, or the yeasts of each winery. The results of this study show that organic wine production favors the differentiation and diversification of Galician wines. This could increase the added value of organic wines and improve their choice in a crowded market.