New approach for wine authenticity screening by a cumulative 1H and 2H qNMR

Abstract

New methodological approach for rapid control of wine authenticity without sample preparation, based on the quantitative NMR spectroscopy (qNMR) of the protium 1H and deuterium 2H nucleus is suggested. The content of dominant (e.g. water, ethanol) and some minor (e.g. glycerol, organic acids) components of wine are determined from qNMR 1H spectra for authentication of molecular composition. The sum of all exchanging hydrogen atoms of wine's components provide the 1H signal with a chemical shift of 4.8 ppm. Accounting for their content from 1H spectrum allows us calculate the 2H isotopic content in wine water from integral intensity of corresponding signal in the 2H qNMR spectrum using an internal or external standard with a known content of the 2H isotope. The possible addition of water can be found from comparison of this value with values of surface and/or ground waters from corresponding viticulture areas. This approach was used for white and red wines from the Black Sea region (Krasnodar area & Crimea peninsula). The 2H contents in investigated wines range from 157 to 165 ppm. The maximum 2H isotope content in surface waters does not exceed 148 ppm. A qNMR measurement of wine according to the proposed approach takes some minutes, that significantly exceeds the laboriousness of methods based on IRMS/SIRA (e.g. δ13C, δ18O). The error of qNMR measurements is less than 2.0%. The qNMR screening of deuterium (2H) in ethanol can be used for detection of possible wine chaptalization. This approach is similar to the known SNIF-NMR method. The positive difference with this method is the use of minimal quantity of enriched 2H standard and measurement of integral intensities of all signals instead of heights. It allows to reduce measurements' time as well as to measure the 2H content of all fragments of ethanol molecules – CH3−, CH2−, OH-groups. The publication has been prepared with the support of the “RUDN University Program 5–100”.