The increased presence of wildfires during the ripping and harvesting season of wine grapes is a concern for grape growers. Smoke contamination can affect the wine produced in many ways including a burnt taste profile. The total amount and ratios of volatile phenols: guaiacol, 4-methyl guaiacol, syringol, o-cresol, p-cresol, m-cresol are considered indicators of smoke-tainted grapes. Because the phenols may bind to polysaccharides only to be released during fermentation, determining if grapes are impacted can require complicated analyses involving several extraction steps and advanced instrumentation like LC-MS/MS. The goal of this study was to establish an environmentally friendly, quick and easy extraction method for phenols in grape berries and wine. Green and cheap deep eutectic solvents were used with ultrasound-assisted extraction. Preliminary results using spike and recovery data will be presented. Upon continued development, simplified methods could be performed by growers and wineries on time scales relative to harvest schedules.

Developing methods for easy and rapid analysis of smoke taint in wine and grapes

ACS Spring 2022

The official archive and repository for all ACS Meetings & Expositions abstracts and select posters or presentations.