Wine Quality Versus Ripeness of Light-Sorted Carlos Muscadine Grapes

Abstract

Carlos muscadine grapes (<i>Vitis rotundifolia</i> Michx.) were separated nondestructively into four ripeness classes with a 9Berrymatic9 optical sorting unit equipped with 546- and 610-nm filters. Effective sorting into ripeness classes was evidenced by °Brix, total titratable acidity, pH, and Brix-acid ratio determined on juice samples. Wines made from each of the four classes of ripeness-sorted grapes and a control (unsorted) sample were evaluated by chemical, physical, and sensory methods. The wines from grapes of optimum ripeness (classes 2 and 3) were superior to wines from grapes in the control goup, underripe grapes (class 1), or slightly overripe grapes (class 4). These results emphasize the importance of grape ripeness to wine quality.