Researchers from the Analytical Chemistry Department of the University of La Laguna and the Institute of Viticulture and Enology of Pleven (Bulgaria) have initiated contacts to promote a collaboration agreement that will allow doctoral students from both academic centers to carry out research stays in both countries and develop doctoral theses in the wine field.
For Barbara Socas Rodriguez, professor and researcher at Research Group on Chemical Analysis Applied to Industry, Environment and Agri-food Products (AQAIMPA) −directed by the professor of Analytical Chemistry Miguel Ángel Rodríguez Delgado− The implementation of this specific agreement will enable the establishment of joint lines of cooperation and the development of future joint doctoral theses.
“While it’s true that the University of La Laguna has a better and more specialized infrastructure from an analytical standpoint, we have less experience in everything involved in studying wine composition, something in which Pleven researchers have extensive experience,” the expert explains. In fact, the future agreement was forged during Dr. Dimitar Robertov Drimitrov’s stay in Tenerife, from the Selection, Enology, and Chemistry Department of the Bulgarian viticultural institute.
Dimitrov has extensive experience in the fields of food science and wine technology, knowledge he shared during a seminar held a few days ago at the University of La Laguna. The seminar was attended by students and researchers from the Analytical Chemistry area and the Department of Chemical Engineering and Pharmaceutical Technology. During the seminar, the expert delved into the development of a new indicator, the Acetic Acid Index (AAI), which is crucial in determining the level of acidification and acid stability of wines.
In addition to this finding, the Pleven researcher presented the latest results obtained by his research group regarding new wine varieties produced in Bulgaria from novel grapevines, which they compared to French varieties. The study's conclusions demonstrated the high sensory quality of Bulgarian wine, registering "good, adequate, and high" parameters, indicative of quality wines.
The expert has also focused his research on the biological potential of wine, an aspect less addressed at the University of La Laguna, which is why, according to Socas, the establishment of scientific collaborations with international groups like this one is fundamental: “They allow us to enrich our lines of research, improve our work and offer solutions of interest to society.”.
Dimitar Robertov Drimitrov's recent visit to the University of La Laguna, part of the Erasmus Program, culminated in a Bulgarian wine tasting and several activities organized by the AQAIMPA group, which have been reported by the Chair of Agritourism and Wine Tourism of the Canary Islands.
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