Soil chemistry and meteorological conditions influence the elemental profiles of West European wines. (15th November 2019)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Blotevogel, Simon; Schreck, Eva; Laplanche, Christophe; Besson, Philippe; Saurin, Nicolas; Audry, Stéphane; Viers, Jérôme; Oliva, Priscia
• Is Part Of: Food chemistry. Volume 298(2019)
• Publication Date: 2019-11-15
• Subjects: Soil -- Terroir -- Wine composition -- Elemental analysis -- Origin tracing -- Environmental parameters; Food -- Analysis -- Periodicals; Food -- Composition -- Periodicals; 664
• DOI: 10.1016/j.foodchem.2019.125033
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 0308-8146

Abstract

Highlights: Lime content in soils partially determines the elemental composition of wines. Mg and Ca contents differ most between wine-color categories. Wine color and soil type explain jointly 28.5% of total variance in the dataset. Climatic conditions influence wine elemental composition slightly but significantly. Aging, alcohol oxidation and precipitation do not influence Ba, Ca, Mg, Mn and Sr contents after storage. Abstract: Elemental profiles of wines have been used successfully to distinguish their geographical provenience around the world; however, underlying mechanisms are poorly understood. In this study, Ba, Ca, Mg, Mn and Sr contents were determined in 215 wines from several West European wine-growing areas using an easy-to-perform analysis based on ICP-OES. Major environmental and wine-making parameters (soil type as "calcareous" or not, rainfall, temperature and wine color) were used to explain variations within the dataset. The combined effects of wine-making processes (expressed by wine color) and soil type explained 28.5% of total variance. The effect of climatic conditions explained 24.1% of variance and could be interpreted as intensity of drought stress. Finally, carbonate occurrence in soils and climatic conditions systematically influenced the elemental composition of the wines. These findings provide insights into the mechanisms underlying elemental fingerprinting and allow prediction of which wine-growing regions can easily be distinguished based on elemental profiles as a marker of the terroir in viticulture.