Wine fingerprinting using a bio-geochemical approach

Abstract

The wine sector is a billion euro business and therefore subjected to multiple attempts of fraudulent practices. This requires the development of rapid and reliable methods to detect such situations. Several methodologies have been developed based on the chemical profiles of the wines, but they are limited due to the environmental conditions that cannot be controlled. The use of DNA-based detection systems are an emergent research field that have been extended to a wide variety of food products and are still the most reliable methods for varietal identification. However these methods are not suitable for geographical determination. Soil related fingerprints have a primary role considering that there is a relationship between the elemental composition of wine and the composition of the provenance soil. WineBioCode is a project aiming to define the best strategy for wine authenticity based on a multidisciplinary approach. Two DNA-based strategies have been developed based on Real-time PCR and a label free optical biosensor platform. Both platforms enabled successful identification of specific DNA-targets when applied to Vitis vinifera L., and can be applied throughout the grape-wine chain. The methods are complementary and can be used in different situations, according to the requirements. The geographical evaluation has been assessed by the strontium 875r1865r isotope ratio determination involving soil evaluation in the vineyards followed by its assay in the wine samples. The results are being integrated in order to establish the best procedure to be undertaken for wine fingerprinting, including varietal composition and geographical origin, therefore fulfilling the requirements of the geographical denominations in wine certification.