Characterization of Polyphenols in a Sicilian Autochthonous White Grape Variety (PDO) for Monitoring Production Process and Shelf-Life of Wines

Abstract

Sicilian wines have shown a growing expansion in the international market, and over 60% of the production of them is focused on quality products. Grillo is a white grape variety, and it is among the best-known variety, with a cultivated area of 6300 ha and with the vocation of being particularly predisposed to aging for years or even decades. This paper aimed to perform a physiochemical (SSC and pH) and polyphenolic characterization of Grillo wines that were produced by a selected winery in the years 2011–2021 using an optimized RP-HPLC-DAD method. The polyphenols fraction was assessed by means a semiquantitative analysis on which, statistical processing was carried out. The HCA and PCA highlighted the presence of three clusters in the samples. Cluster 1 was composed of the samples from the years 2011–2014, cluster 2 composed of the samples from 2015–2017, and cluster 3 composed of the samples from 2019–2021. Using an HSD Tukey test, it was possible to point out that some compounds were makers of specific clusters and therefore, specific vintages. This preliminary study showed that polyphenols are suitable markers that can be used to identify Grillo vintages, and they should be also related to the storage conditions or different production processes.