Characterization of Musts, Wines, and Sparkling Wines Based on Their Elemental Composition Determined by ICP-OES and ICP-MS

Samples from the different processing stages in the elaboration of sparkling wine (cava)-including must, base wine, and sparkling wine-of Pinot Noir and Xarel.lo grape varieties from different vineyard qualities (A, B, C, D) have been analyzed by inductively coupled plasma (ICP) techniques to determine their elemental composition. The resulting data has been used to characterize these products according to oenological features and product qualities. For this purpose, box plot diagrams, bar charts, and principal components analysis (PCA) have been used. The study of the behavior of each given species has pointed out the relevance of some elements as markers or descriptors of winemaking processes. Among others, Cu and K are abundant in musts and their concentrations progressively decrease through the cava production process. S levels suddenly increase at the base wine step (and further decay) due to the addition of sulfites as preserving agents. Finally, concentrations of Na, Ca, Fe, and Mg increase from the first fermentation due to the addition of clarifying agents such as bentonite. PCA has been applied to try to extract solid and global conclusions on trends and chemical markers within the groups of samples more easily and efficiently than more conventional approaches.

Automated summary

The elemental composition of different processing stages in the production of sparkling wine (cava) has been analyzed using ICP techniques. The data obtained has been used to characterize the wines and identify key elements in the winemaking process. Cu and K were found to be abundant in musts and their concentrations decrease throughout the production process, while S levels increase at the base wine step due to the addition of sulfites. Na, Ca, Fe, and Mg concentrations increase after the first fermentation due to the addition of clarifying agents. PCA was used to efficiently analyze trends and chemical markers within the samples.