Influence of maceration time on phenolic compounds and antioxidant activity of the Syrah must and wine

Abstract

The main objective of this study was to evaluate the effect of the maceration time up to 30 days on the phenolic compounds, monomeric anthocyanins, color intensity, and antioxidant activity (FRAP, DPPH, and ORAC) of both must and Syrah wine produced in the Sao Francisco Valley, Brazil. Up to the 15th day, the maceration process promoted an increase in phenolic compounds, while the major extraction of anthocyanins occurred up to the 20th days. The results showed the concentration of total phenolic compounds stabilized in 20th days until the end of maceration and it was higher in comparison with the concentration found at the beginning. Consequently, prolonging the maceration time to 20 days not only improved the phenolic compounds profile but also the antioxidant activity of the tropical Syrah wine. PRACTICAL APPLICATIONS: The maceration process in winemaking is an important step aimed at extracting and increasing the concentration of phenolic compounds and, as a consequence, the antioxidant activity of the wine improves as well. In practical terms, this process takes about 5 days to complete in wineries, although this paper demonstrates that higher maceration times, up to 20 days, have improve the concentration of phenolic compounds in tropical wines produced with Syrah vines and such improvement has a great impact not only in the sensory properties but in antioxidant properties of the beverage, which may be positively seen by the consumer.