ReviewFungus resistant grape varieties as a suitable alternative for organic wine production: Benefits, limits, and challenges

- Using FRG improves diseases management and decrease the need for pesticides, therefore allowing significant cost savings for growers.
- Blind tasting showed that the FRG wines are generally rated as equivalent or superior to V. vinifera wines; One of the main restrictions to the expansion of FRG in wine production is that their names are unknown to consumers.
- FRG varieties carry large genetic pools making them suitable for various wine style; The development of suitable processes for FRG winemaking will contribute to improve FRG wines.

Areas dedicated to organic wine production have significantly increased over the last few years. The vast majority of organic wine is made from Vitis vinifera varieties that are highly susceptible to fungal diseases and pests, making organic management difficult for growers. Depending on the growing area, 20-70% of organic growers declare issues with fungal diseases in Europe. Recently, fungus-resistant grape (FRG) varieties have been recommended as the most suitable choice in organic viticulture, especially in areas where disease pressure necessitates high rates of fungicides. FRG varieties could contribute to improved disease management in organic as well as conventional viticulture, reduce production costs and decrease copper accumulation in soils. Recently, many FRG varieties presenting advantageous agronomic attributes and enological characteristics have been developed in North America and Europe for conventional and sustainable farming. In this review, we present an overview of the benefits and limits associated with FRG varieties in addition to the current knowledge regarding berry and wine composition, canopy management, and winemaking challenges and practices.