Anthocyanin pattern of several red grape cultivars and wines made from them

A high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) method with in-line photodiode array detection was applied to separate anthocyanins from red grape skin extracts of several Spanish cultivars, before and after winemaking, and from finished red wines. Data show that, for every cultivar studied, the anthocyanin pattern of the three materials considered (fresh grape skins, crushed grape skins after winemaking, and finished red wines) is quite different. These results may be explained by taking into account the different chemical structures of each anthocyanin and the degradation reactions that should take place during winemaking. On the other hand, the HPLC fingerprint of every material (fresh grape skins, crushed grape skins after fermentation, and wines) is related to cultivar characteristics. Thus, HPLC determination of the anthocyanin pattern of wines may be used to predict the grape cultivar from which wine was made.