Ethylidene-bridged Flavan-3-ols in red wine and correlation with wine age.

Condensed tannins are responsible for astringency and bitterness and participate in the color stability of red wines. During wine making and aging, they undergo chemical changes including, for example, acetaldehyde-induced polymerization. Following this study, the ethylidene-bridged flavan-3-ols were monitored in different vintage wines made from grapes collected in the same vineyard in three wineries in Bordeaux, Pauillac, and Saint Julien.

Analysis of ethylidene-bridged flavan-3-ols in wine.

A method was developed to determine the amount of ethylidene-bridged flavan-3-ols in wine. The method was based upon the analysis of 2,2'-ethylidenediphloroglucinol (EDP), a product formed after acid-catalyzed cleavage of wine flavan-3-ols in the presence of excess phloroglucinol. In the developed analytical method, the wine was purified and concentrated using C18 solid-phase extraction before the phloroglucinolysis reaction was carried out.

(+)-Catechin-aldehyde condensations: competition between acetaldehyde and glyoxylic acid.

(+)-Catechin reaction with two aldehydes (acetaldehyde and glyoxylic acid) was studied in winelike model solution. The two aldehydes were reacted either individually or together with (+)-catechin and in molar excess. The reactions were followed by HLPC-UV and HPLC-ESI/MS to monitor (+)-catechin disappearance as well as dimer and polymer appearance.