Wine should ONLY be wine. Application Summary Compendium

Importance of the Topic

Comprehensive analytical methods for wine are critical to ensure product quality safety and authenticity. From monitoring health related polyphenols to detecting trace contaminants and verifying geographic origin these techniques support regulatory compliance and consumer confidence.

Objectives and Study Overview

This compendium summarizes a series of application studies focused on red wine analysis. Key goals include quantitation of phenolic constituents and pesticide residues isotope ratio analysis for authenticity profiling direct profiling of antioxidant compounds elemental and impurity screening and automated determination of sulfites aldehyde acidity and glycerol.

Methodology and Instrumentation Used

• Solid phase extraction coupled with gradient HPLC employing HyperSep retain PEP cartridges and Accucore PFP column on Accela UHPLC
• QuEChERS extraction and dispersive SPE cleanup followed by LC MS MS using Accucore aQ column on Dionex UltiMate 3000 with TSQ Vantage detector
• Isotope ratio measurements of water juice and wine using GasBench II IRMS and HDO II water equilibrator
• Combustion and high temperature carbon reduction of ethanol in FlashEA1112 HT linked to DELTA V IRMS for simultaneous C H and O isotope analysis
• Ultra fast UHPLC separation on Hypersil GOLD column with high resolution Orbitrap detection for antioxidant profiling
• Flame atomic absorption spectroscopy on iCE 3300 AA for iron copper and zinc quantitation
• ICP OES analysis with iCAP 7400 Duo for trace and major element determination
• GC MS analysis with TRACE GC Ultra and ISQ mass spectrometer using SPME sample introduction for impurity screening
• Discrete photometric assays on Gallery and Arena analyzers for free sulfite acetaldehyde total acidity and glycerol

Main Results and Discussion

• Excellent recovery and resolution achieved for nine catechins and phenolic acids enabling reliable antioxidant profiling
• Rapid quantitation of 24 pesticide residues with low limits of quantitation high linearity and robust precision
• Direct 18O analysis of wine without distillation demonstrated no sample memory cross talk ensuring high throughput authenticity screening
• Simultaneous C H O isotope ratios in ethanol measured with precision better than 0.1 percent and throughput up to 200 samples per day
• Ultra fast chromatography combined with high resolution accurate mass eliminated isobaric interferences enabling precise quantitation in complex matrices
• Flame AA and ICP OES methods conformed to regulatory limits for metal screening delivering sensitivity to sub milligram per liter levels
• GC MS detected off flavor compounds below sensory thresholds using two minute sample preparation enhancing on site quality control
• Automated photometric and enzymatic methods for SO2 acetaldehyde acidity and glycerol provided rapid analysis of up to 60 samples in under 35 minutes

Benefits and Practical Applications of the Method

• Enables routine monitoring of polyphenols and pesticides to meet food safety standards
• Supports fraud prevention and origin verification through isotope fingerprinting
• Streamlines metal screening to prevent haze formation and ensure consumer health
• Enhances flavor quality control by rapid impurity marker detection
• Automates key wine parameters reducing hands on time and reagent consumption

Future Trends and Opportunities

• Integration of ultra high resolution mass spectrometry and rapid separations for untargeted wine metabolomics
• Advances in portable IRMS and field deployable instruments for on vineyard authenticity checks
• Application of chemometric and machine learning tools to large datasets for pattern recognition and origin prediction
• Miniaturized and green sample preparation techniques reducing solvent use and cost
• Expanded multi isotope and elemental profiling to further strengthen geographic and varietal traceability

Conclusion

The compiled application studies demonstrate a versatile toolkit for wine analysis addressing compositional antioxidant content safety contaminants authenticity and sensory quality. These optimized workflows deliver high precision throughput and automation enabling laboratories to maintain rigorous quality assurance in compliance with global regulations.

Used Instrumentation

• Thermo Scientific HyperSep retain PEP SPE cartridges
• Accucore PFP and aQ UHPLC columns
• Accela UHPLC and Dionex UltiMate 3000 systems
• TSQ Vantage tandem mass spectrometer
• GasBench II and HDO II water equilibrator IRMS
• FlashEA1112 HT elemental analyser linked to DELTA V IRMS
• LTQ Orbitrap XL mass spectrometer
• iCE 3300 flame AA and iCAP 7400 ICP OES instruments
• TRACE GC Ultra with ISQ GC MS
• Gallery and Arena discrete photometric analyzers
• WineScan FT120 FTIR analyzer