Terraced vineyards hold cultural significance. Given high maintenance expenses, skilled labor scarcity, and climate shifts, we studied how terrace slope impacts wine and grape quality. In 2019 and 2020, grapes and wine from terraces and valleys differed in a relatively small area with similar mesoclimatic characteristics. Non–terraced vineyards in the valley floor and vineyards on terraces differed in soil profile and soil morphology. The soil on the terraces comprised as much as 90% skeleton, whereas the valley vineyards had a non–skeletal soil composition. In both years, the vines in the terraces were more affected by drought than the vines in the valleys. Grapes from all vineyards were harvested by hand and microvinified. The terrace vines had smaller, mass (2019: –48 %; 2020: –34 %) and number of clusters (2019: –31 %; 2020: –17 %), mass of berries (2019: –24 %; 2020: –9 %), lower yield (2019: –49 %; 2020: –33 %) and a higher ratio of skins (2019: +78 %; 2020: +22 %) to seeds (2019: +70 %; 2020: +25 %) and pulp. The darker color of the grapes from the terraces indicates a higher degree of phenol ripeness. In both years, the terrace wines had higher levels of total polyphenols (2019: +12 %; 2020: +24 %), anthocyanins (2019: +24 %; 2020: +67 %), and proanthocyanidins (PAs; 2019: +37 %; 2020: +30 %) and were sensory rated higher (2019: +51 %; 2020: +74 %) than the wines from the valley vineyards. In 2019, the wines had fewer prodelphinidins (–14 %) and were more galloylated (+26 %). The wines from the terraces contained more alcohol and less esters. Fresh grape skins from the terrace wines contained more anthocyanins and total polyphenols in both years, while dry skins from the valley wines contained more low–molecular weight PAs and were more galloylated in 2019 and contained more prodelphinidins in 2020. Grape skins from terraces were more galloylated in 2019 and contained more total polyphenols, PAs, and low–molecular weight PAs. Under the same experimental conditions (sampling date, standardization of vineyard parameters), wines from terraced vineyards exhibited better phenolic potential and were rated as better sensory than wines from non–terraced vineyards. Understanding the influence of soil and site on grape and wine quality is critical to determining the best vineyard sites suitable for Merlot wines.
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