Title: “Crop thinning (hand versus mechanical), grape maturity and anthocyanin concentration: outcomes from irrigated Cabernet Sauvignon (V. vinifera L.) in a warm climate”

• The trial was carried out at 2 sites. The vines in both sites were trained to a 2-wire vertical trellis. The only difference was: Site 1 was thinned with a Gregoire G65 harvester, and used three pairs of bow rods to thin the lower third of the canopy. Site 2 used a URM Vinestar harvester, and used four pairs of bow rods to thin the lower half of the canopy. The reason only a portion of the canopy was targeted in both sites was to limit the amount of damaged clusters to a smaller area, as well as to facilitate the estimation of percentage fruit removed, thus avoiding over-thinning.