Wine Chemistry
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Wine Chemistry
Wine chemistry explains the flavor, balance, color, stability that was once only possible through subjective description. Understanding the principles of wine chemistry will open your eyes to a new level of wine appreciation.
Phenols
The presence and relative concentration of phenols in wine is the most important factor that affects its quality, flavor and stability.
Flavanoids
Flavanoids are a class of phenols that provide the character of red wines. In reds, they comprise more than 85% of the phenolic content. But in whites, they make up less than 20%.
Nonflavanoids
Nonflavanoids are an important class of phenols in wine. They polymerize together to form tannins and are the primary components of color in white wine.
Chemical Components of Wine
The different chemical components in wine are the reason why wines taste different. The majority of these molecules are unique to certain varietals and winemaking processes.
Caftaric Acid
Caftaric Acid is one of the primary non-flavonoid chemicals present in wine. It is mainly used by winemakers to monitor the oxidative stresses in a wine.
Gallic Acid
Gallic Acid is a phenolic compound found in wine that contributes to its flavor. Gallic Acid freely combines with tannins to affect the properties of the wine, and has numerous anti-oxidant effects in the body.
Lactic Acid
Lactic acid in wine has both beneficial and detrimental effects. One on hand, it mellows out the harshness of malic acid, but on the other it can make the wine susceptible to spoilage.
Tartaric Acid
Tartaric acid is one of the primary contributors to the acidity in wine. In fact, total acidity is a measure of the wine’s tartaric acid concentration.
Acetic Acid
Acetic acid is the main volatile acid found in wine. Although most people do not recognize the name and structure of this acid, its vinegar-like smell is unmistakable.
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