Rapid and simple method for the quantification of flavan-3-ols in wine

A rapid and simple reverse-phase liquid chromatography coupled with fluorescence detection is proposed for the rapid simultaneous analysis of three monomeric flavanols and six procyanidins (i.e., five dimers and one trimer) in wine. Good resolution and low detection limits were obtained for (+)-catechin, (-)-epicatechin, (-)-epicatechin 3-O-gallate, dimers B1, B2, B3, B4 and B2-gallate and trimer C1. The method has been validated for linearity, precision and accuracy. Good performances in terms of selectivity and sensitivity have been also achieved. Moreover, new fluorimetric method has been developed in order to achieve the quantification of (-)-epicatechin 3-O-gallate and procyanidin B2-gallate by fluorescence detection.