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WINEGROWING Stage 1 always occurs from 10 to 20 days onward after sugar per berry has reached a plateau (stopping of berry sugar loading or slowdown of berry sugar accumulation), respectively, for Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon (Figure 1). Stage 3 always occurs from 20 to 40 days onward after sugar per berry has reached a plateau. Between fresh and mature fruit stages, Stage 2 is called neutral/spicy or premature (according to the terroir units) and may vary according to the situation. Stage 2 has to be avoided, when it is considered neutral and could be determined/predicted using the sugarloading method. The terroir (soil and climate) and cultural practices will play a role mainly on the intensity of the fruit's aromatic profile. There is no direct relationship between fruit, Brix or titrable acidity levels and the berry aromatic sequence stages, meaning that fresh, neutral and mature stages can be reached at the same Brix value. In those regards, the model shows that harvest using only Brix value is not relevant. White cultivars — The method is using the berry color evolution (Table 1). > 80 = green/asparagus/citrus/unripe < 80 and > 70 = tropical/grapefruit/citrus/boxtree < 70 = fermentative/neutral/terpene PWV This text was edited from the original publication in Wineland magazine, January 2012. Many thanks to Marianne McKay, Jeanne Brand, Nina Muller (University of Stellenbosch), Drs. Sulette Malherbe and Leanie Louw (Distell) and Dr. Dominique Valentin (Dijon, France) for their relevant input in sensory science. pr actica l win ery & vin eya rd APRIL 20 13 67