Vitisin A content in Chilean wines from Vitis vinifera Cv. Cabernet Sauvignon and contribution to the color of aged red wines.
Vitisin A was prepared from malvidin 3-glucoside and pyruvic acid in model wine medium, isolated by countercurrent chromatography, and purified by preparative high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). The synthesized compound was used as a reference standard to quantify vitisin A in Chilean wines from Vitis vinifera cv. Cabernet Sauvignon, including a vertical row of wines from the same vineyard over 16 years. Maximum vitisin A content was reached within the first year of storage. Importantly, up to half of the initial amount of vitisin A in young wines was still present in 15 year old wines. Although vitisin A was found to be much more stable as compared to other monomeric C-4 underivatized anthocyanins, it also slowly degrades after reaching its peak concentration. The "color activity concept" was applied to vitisin A, malvidin 3-glucoside, malvidin 3-(6' '-acetylglucoside), and polymeric pigments isolated by countercurrent chromatography in order to estimate their contribution toward the overall color expression of wines. It was found that vitisin A is only a minor contributor to the visually perceived color of aged red wines (color contribution approximately 5%). The major contributor is the polymeric fraction (color contribution approximately 70-90%).
D001572:Benzofurans / Q000032:analysis*; D002677:Chile; D005638:Fruit / Q000737:chemistry; D006863:Hydrogen-Ion Concentration; D010636:Phenols / Q000032:analysis*; D010858:Pigmentation; D010860:Pigments, Biological / Q000032:analysis; D011108:Polymers / Q000032:analysis; D013997:Time Factors; D027843:Vitis / Q000737:chemistry*; D014920:Wine / Q000032:analysis*
D001572:Benzofurans; D010636:Phenols; D010860:Pigments, Biological; D011108:Polymers; C412469:vitisin A