OENO IVAS 2019 banner
IVES 9 IVES Conference Series 9 OENO IVAS 9 OENO IVAS 2019 9 Chemical and Biochemical reactions, including grape and wines microorganisms impact 9 Are dicysteinyl polysulfanes responsible for post-bottling release of hydrogen sulfide?

Are dicysteinyl polysulfanes responsible for post-bottling release of hydrogen sulfide?

Abstract

Hydrogen sulfide (H2S) has a significant impact on wine aroma attributes and wine quality when present at concentrations above its aroma threshold of 1.1 to 1.6 μg/L. Therefore, the management of H2S concentrations in wines, whether from fermentation or “other” origins, is an important consideration for winemakers. The main techniques used for H2S removal are oxidative handling and/or copper fining; however, the effectiveness of these treatments may be temporary, as H2S can often reappear post-bottling along with other volatile sulfur compounds (VSCs) when reductive conditions are re-established. Moreover, it is proposed that oxidative treatments applied in the presence of copper may produce compounds such as disulfides and diorganopolysulfanes, which might initially appear stable but are susceptible to reductive cleavage, thereby potentially acting as latent sources of H2S. 

The aim of this study was to determine whether putative polysulfanes could act as latent sources of H2S during post-bottling storage. Experiments conducted in model wine enabled identification of four dicysteinyl polysulfanes when H2S was oxidised in the presence of cysteine, copper and iron. The stability of the dicysteinyl polysulfanes formed in-situ was evaluated and conditions impacting the release of H2S from the polysulfanes were also determined, which provided some understanding of the possible mechanisms of release. 

The results of this study showed that the stability of the dicysteinyl polysulfanes decreased as sulfur chain length increased, which accorded with the relative proportions of polysulfanes initially formed. 

Notably, H2S was released over time, with the greatest decline in polysulfane relative abundance and largest release of H2S (up to 212 μg/L) being associated with the addition of commonly used reducing agents, especially sulfur dioxide, to the model wines containing the polysulfanes. Desulfurisation of cysteine could account for only minor quantities of H2S. In addition, Cysteine-S-sulfonates were tentatively identified by mass spectrometry after six months of storage, and similarly to the parent polysulfanes, their relative concentrations decreased with increasing number of linking sulfur atoms. These results shed light on the potential pathways for reformation of VSCs in bottled wine and demonstrate that dicysteinyl polysulfanes may have the potential to act as latent sources of H2S in wine post-bottling, potentially via a sulfitolysis mechanism.

DOI:

Publication date: June 11, 2020

Issue: OENO IVAS 2019

Type: Article

Authors

Marlize Bekker , David Jeffery, Gal Kreitman, John Danilewicz

The Australian Wine Research Institute PO Box 197 – Glen Osmond SA 5064 – Australia

Contact the author

Keywords

Polysulfanes, S-sulfonate, Copper, Sulfur dioxide 

Tags

IVES Conference Series | OENO IVAS 2019

Citation

Related articles…

A spatial explicit inventory of EU wine protected designation of origin to support decision making in a changing climate

Winemaking areas recognized as protected designations of origin (PDOs) shape important economic, environmental and cultural values that are tied to closely defined geographic locations. To preserve wine products and wine-growing practices adopted in different PDOs these areas are strictly regulated by legal specifications. However, quality viticulture is increasingly under pressure from climate change, which is altering the local conditions of many winegrowing areas. Therefore, maintaining traditional wine products will require the adoption of tailored adaptation strategies, including possible changes in the legal regulation of protected wines. To this end, it is necessary to have a comprehensive knowledge on PDOs including their extension, products and allowed practices. While there have been efforts to build databases that summarize the characteristics for individual wine PDO areas and to quantify the related effects of climate change, much information is still included only in the official documentation of the EU geographical indication register and has never been collected in a comprehensive manner. With this study we aim at filling this gap by building a spatial inventory of European wine PDOs that supports decision making in viticulture in the context of climate change. To map and characterize European wine PDOs, we analysed their legal documents and extracted relevant information useful for climate change adaptation. The output consists of a comprehensive geographical dataset that identifies the boundaries of all 1200 European wine PDOs at unprecedented spatial resolution and includes a set of legally binding regulations, such as authorized vine varieties, maximum yields and planting density. The inventory will allow researchers to analyse the impacts of climate change on European wine PDOs and support decision makers in developing tailored adaptation strategies. This includes, among others, the evaluation of new vineyard site selection, the expansion of cultivated varieties or the authorization of irrigation in vineyards.

Chemistry and analysis of key volatile compounds of wine and their precursors in grape

A relatively small number of the many volatile substances of wine, often present at trace
concentrations, are considered as key volatile compounds. These compounds often exist in grapes
under poorly odoriferous or non volatile forms as aroma precursors.

The effect of wine matrix on the initial release of volatile compounds and their evolution in the headspace

There is evidence in the literature that non-volatile wine matrix can modify the release and therefore the perception of the compounds involved in wine aroma [1-3].

Depletion Of Vine-Shoots Phenolic Composicion After Being Used As An Enological Tool For Wine Differentiation

Pruning vine-shoots are a viticulture waste that have been traditionally poorly exploited in relation to its chemical minority composition related to phenolic and volatile compounds. In this line, toasted vine-shoots supposes a proposal of enological tool to use to modulate the chemical and sensorial profile of wines. From a phenolic point of view, when vine-shoots are used during winemaking mainly influence to increase the flavanols and stilbenes content, mostly trans-resveratrol, as also an increasing in the sweet tannins and decreasing the green character and total anthocyanins, changing the violet for garnet colour.

Root development and the performance of grapevines in response to natural as well as man‐made soil impediments

The majority of soils used for wine and table grape production in South Africa are notoriously shallow, i.e. they are restricting root penetration.