Environmental vineyard conditions can affect the chemical composition or metabolites of grapes and their wines. Grapes grown in three different regions of South Korea were collected and separated into pulp, skin, and seed. The grapes were also vinified after crushing. (1)H NMR spectroscopy with pattern recognition (PR) methods was used to investigate the metabolic differences in pulp, skin, seed, and wines from the different regions. Discriminatory compounds among the grapes were Na, Ca, K, malate, citrate, threonine, alanine, proline, and trigonelline according to PR methods of principal component analysis (PCA) or partial least-squares discriminant analysis (PLS-DA). Grapes grown in regions with high sun exposure and low rainfall showed higher levels of sugar, proline, Na, and Ca together with lower levels of malate, citrate, alanine, threonine, and trigonelline than those grown in regions with relatively low sun exposure and high rainfall. Environmental effects were also observed in the complementary wines. This study demonstrates that (1)H NMR-based metabolomics coupled with multivariate statistical data sets can be useful for determining grape and wine quality.
Soy sauce, a well-known seasoning in Asia and throughout the world, consists of many metabolites that are produced during fermentation or aging and that have various health benefits. However, their comprehensive assessment has been limited due to targeted or instrumentally specific analysis. This paper presents for the first time a metabolic characterization of soy sauce, especially that aged up to 12 years, to obtain a global understanding of the metabolic variations through (1)H NMR spectroscopy coupled with multivariate pattern recognition techniques. Elevated amino acids and organic acids and the consumption of carbohydrate were associated with continuous involvement of microflora in aging for 12 years. In particular, continuous increases in the levels of betaine were found during aging for up to 12 years, demonstrating that microbial- or enzyme-related metabolites were also coupled with osmotolerant or halophilic bacteria present during aging. This work provides global insights into soy sauce through a (1)H NMR-based metabolomic approach that enhances the current understanding of the holistic metabolome and allows assessment of soy sauce quality.
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