Life Cycle Assessment applied to the vinification stage: a scenario-based approach for an energy consumption evaluation

The wine sector is highly exposed to the effects of climate change. The possible increase in ambient temperature in the cellar and in the initial temperature of musts, along with the rise in sugar content due to increasingly hot summers, may result in significant variations in the demand for electrical energy required for refrigeration during vinification. Using data from eleven wineries, a Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) analysis was conducted, to assess the environmental impacts of this production stage and to evaluate the effectiveness of some adaptation and mitigation strategies.