Macrowine 2021
IVES 9 IVES Conference Series 9 Inhibition of reductive characters in wine by cu-organic acids: predicting the duration of protection

Inhibition of reductive characters in wine by cu-organic acids: predicting the duration of protection

Abstract

Cu organic acid complexes efficiently bind hydrogen sulfide in wine and therefore prevent its accumulation and subsequent reductive off-flavour [1]. This fraction of Cu can also bind methanethiol, the other main contributor to reductive wine characters, albeit with less efficient binding than for hydrogen sulfide [1]. However, during bottle aging of wine, the concentration of Cu organic acid complexes gradually decline and the sulfide-bound form of Cu increases. The point at which the Cu organic acid concentration is depleted signifies a potential for reductive aroma development to occur. The aim of this study is ascertain how long Cu organic acid complexes in wine can offer a protection against the reductive aroma compounds. High (0.6 mg/L), medium (0.3 mg/L) and no (0 mg/L) Cu(II) additions were made to Pinot Grigio and Chardonnay wines at bottling, and the bottled wines were then stored at 14 °C in darkness. Analysis was performed on the wines at 0, 2, 4, 8 and 12-14 months after bottling. Throughout bottle ageing process, the concentrations of three different Cu fractions, attributed to Cu organic acid complexes, Cu thiol complexes and sulfide-bound Cu, were monitored by stripping potentiometry and colorimetric methods. The free and salt-releasable concentration of hydrogen sulfide and methanethiol were determined by gas chromatography with chemiluminescene detection. Sensorial analysis was also performed on the wines after 12 months. During the first 2-months of bottle aging of all wines, the Cu-organic acid concentrations initially remained stable or increased, as total packed oxygen was consumed. Afterwards, during the low oxygen aging phase of the wines, the Cu-organic acid concentration declined exponentially with a concomitant increase in sulfide-bound Cu. These changes in sulfide-bound Cu were matched by an increase the salt-releasable hydrogen sulfide concentrations of the wines during aging. Free concentrations of hydrogen sulfide and methanethiol were only found to accumulate in wines without any Cu-organic acid present at bottling. For the Pinot Grigio without Cu-organic acid present at bottling (i.e., the no Cu addition treatment), the free methanethiol concentrations in the wine were above the aroma threshold and this wine was assessed as reductive. Alternatively, for the Pinot Grigio with Cu-organic acid complexes at bottling, only concentrations of free methanethiol below the aroma threshold were measured and the wine was not reductive. The decay in Cu-organic acid complexes, in the low oxygen aging phase of the wines, were found to follow first order kinetics that were similar for the Chardonnay and the Pinot Grigio. These results enable determination of the time-frame that Cu-organic acids can offer white wine protection against the potential accumulation of reductive aroma compounds.

DOI:

Publication date: September 14, 2021

Issue: Macrowine 2021

Type: Article

Authors

Xinyi Zhang

National Wine and Grape Industry Centre, Charles Sturt University, Wagga Wagga, Australia,Nikolaos KONTOUDAKIS (Laboratory of Enology and Alcoholic Drinks, Department of Food Science and Human Nutrition, Agricultural University of Athens) John W. BLACKMAN (National Wine and Grape Industry Centre, Charles Sturt University) Andrew C. CLARK (National Wine and Grape Industry Centre, Charles Sturt University)

Contact the author

Keywords

cu organic acid complexes, hydrogen sulfide accumulation, white wine bottle ageing

Citation

Related articles…

Estimation of chemical age of red wines with the use of Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR) and chemometrics

The color of a red wine is one of the most important parameters of its quality, giving much information on its status, such as the grape variety used or the winemaking style. As the result of a complex equilibrium between different forms of anthocyanins and polymerization reactions which occur over the course of time, color can also serve as an indication of a wines’ age. For this purpose the “chemical age” i and ii indexes have been introduced by Somers in 1977. The chemical age index i measures the color absorbance after the addition of acetaldehyde while chemical index ii provides an indication of how much of the total red pigments are resistant to SO2 bleaching.

Sensory and physicochemical impact of proanthocyanidic tannins on red wine fruity aroma

AIM: Previous research on the fruity character of red wines highlighted the role of esters [1]. Literature provides evidence that, besides these esters, other compounds that are not necessarily volatiles may have an important impact on the overall fruity aroma of wine, contributing to a masking effect [2][3]. The goal of this work was to assess the olfactory consequences of a mixture between esters and proanthocyanidic tannins, through sensory and physico-chemical approaches.

Correlative study between degradation of rosé wine under accelerated conditions and under normal conditions

Several studies have tried to develop different methods to study the photodegradation of wine in an accelerated way, trying to elucidate the effect of light on the wine compounds[1]. In a previous study, our team developed a chamber that speeds up the photodegradation of rosé wine[2]. In the present work we have tried to establish a correlation between irradiation times in accelerated conditions and the natural exposure to the cycles of light that usually exist in markets or at home.

Characterization of spatial and temporal soil water status in vineyard by DC resistivity measurements

We performed a DC resistivity monitoring experiment during eight months in 2003. Low, medium and high resolution measurements have been carried out at various locations of a vineyard. General apparent resistivity mapping evidences the spatial variations of the summer drying of the subsurface.

Berry shrivel causes – summarizing current hypotheses

Diverse ripening disorders affect grapevine resulting in high economic losses worldwide. The common obvious symptom is shriveling berries, however the shriveling pattern and the consequences for berry quality traits are distinct in each disorder. Among them, the disorder berry shrivel is characterized by a reduced sugar accumulation short after the onset of berry ripening leaving the clusters unsuitable for wine processing. Although our knowledge on BS increased recently, potential internal or external triggers contributing to the induction of BS are yet to be explored.