Correlation of pigment and flavanol content with antioxidant properties in selected aged regional wines from Greece

Selected Greek regional, aged red wines were assessed for their polyphenolic composition using well-established spectrophotometric methodology, and tested for antioxidant potential by three different assays. The total polyphenol (TP) concentration was found to vary from 1217 to 3772 mg L-1 gallic acid equivalents, total anthocyanin (TA) content ranged from 44.3 to 360.1 mg L-1, and total flavanol (TF) from 291.1 to 664.8 mg L-1 catechin equivalents. The antiradical activity was evaluated using DPPH., and varied from 0.73 to 1.37 mM Trolox(R) equivalents, while reducing power values were from 5.29 to 10.80 mM ascorbic acid equivalents, using a modified FRAP assay. The hydroxyl free radical scavenging activity was determined with the deoxyribose method, and ranged from 38.5 to 59.9% decrease in A(532) relative to control. The examinations showed that TP and TF may provide a significant contribution to the overall antioxidant status of wines, but TA appears to be a less important factor in this respect. Reducing power was found to be highly associated with the antiradical activity of wines. (C) 2002 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.