Enological potential of red grapes: cultivars and geographic origin of vineyards

The study of technologic and phenolic maturation is very efficient to determinate quality potential of red grapes cultivars and clones under different maturity levels or geographic origins. This study was made in order to evaluate the enologic potential of the grape cultivars from the six Brazilian viticultural regions: Planalto Catarinense – Santa Catarina State (28°18’S – 49°56’W – altitude between 900 and 1400m); Planalto de Palmas – Santa Catarina State (27°00’S – 52°00’W – altitude between 1200 and 1400m); Campos de Cima da Serra – Rio Grande do Sul State (28°33’S – 50°42’W – altitude between 900 and 1100m); Serra Gaúcha – Rio Grande do Sul State (29°10’S – 51°32’W – altitude between 450 and 700m); Serra do Sudeste – Rio Grande do Sul State (30°33’S – 52°31’W – altitude between 350 and 450m); Campanha Meridional – Rio Grande do Sul State (30°53’S – 55°32’W – altitude between 200 and 350m). The variables analyzed from the grapes were: in the whole grapes: physic analysis (grape weight; % of skins, seeds and meet in relation to total weight; seeds number and % of juice). In the juice: levels of sugars, organic acids and pH. In the skins and seeds: levels and stractibility of anthocyans and tannins of skins, levels of seed tannins, total polyphénols, total tannins and skin tannins/seed tannins ratio. The totality of results makes the technologic and phenolic profile of the grapes at maturity and made possible put and discriminate one cultivar in relation to geographic origin and different cultivars into the particular region. The most significant differences concerning enological potential of cultivars and regions were observed for sugar levels, titrable acidity, total anthocyanins and total polyphénols.