Proton Nuclear Magnetic Resonance-Spectroscopic Discrimination of Wines Reflects Genetic Homology of Several Different Grape (V. vinifera L.) Cultivars

BACKGROUND AND AIMS: Proton nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy coupled multivariate analysis ((1)H NMR-PCA/PLS-DA) is an important tool for the discrimination of wine products. Although (1)H NMR has been shown to discriminate wines of different cultivars, a grape genetic component of the discrimination has been inferred only from discrimination of cultivars of undefined genetic homology and in the presence of many confounding environmental factors. We aimed to confirm the influence of grape genotypes in the absence of those factors. METHODS AND RESULTS: We applied (1)H NMR-PCA/PLS-DA and hierarchical cluster analysis (HCA) to wines from five, variously genetically-related grapevine (V. vinifera) cultivars; all grown similarly on the same site and vinified similarly. We also compared the semi-quantitative profiles of the discriminant metabolites of each cultivar with previously reported chemical analyses. The cultivars were clearly distinguishable and there was a general correlation between their grouping and their genetic homology as revealed by recent genomic studies. Between cultivars, the relative amounts of several of the cultivar-related discriminant metabolites conformed closely with reported chemical analyses. CONCLUSIONS: Differences in grape-derived metabolites associated with genetic differences alone are a major source of (1)H NMR-based discrimination of wines and (1)H NMR has the capacity to discriminate between very closely related cultivars. SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY: The study confirms that genetic variation among grape cultivars alone can account for the discrimination of wine by (1)H NMR-PCA/PLS and indicates that (1)H NMR spectra of wine of single grape cultivars may in future be used in tandem with hierarchical cluster analysis to elucidate genetic lineages and metabolomic relations of grapevine cultivars. In the absence of genetic information, for example, where predecessor varieties are no longer extant, this may be a particularly useful approach.