Exploring volatile profiles of White wine: Minimizing analytical error and applying exploratory data analysis

Volatile Organic Compound (VOC) composition, referred to as the aroma profile, was determined in eight commercial white wines using an untargeted approach and DHS-GC-MS methods. Practical aspects of the analytical process, such as the time between a sample was thawed and prepared using DHS extraction, and the specific placement in the GC-MS autosampler, was found to introduce errors. These effects were cumulative and introduced significant variation when confounded. Changes in the GC column, and variation of Tenax traps used during extraction could also introduce variation. Corrective procedures designed to minimize this variation have been proposed, which includes the use of Quality control (QC) samples to monitor errors. Analysing selected aroma essences from Le Nez du Vin aroma master kit provided chemical knowledge of specific aroma characteristic related to wine. It was possible to approximately predict the presence of these aromas in white wine samples and compare estimations with existing literature. The predictions rely on an alternative use of a Classical Least Squares (CLS) model. The study serves a proof-of-concept in using a new approach to sensory analysis, relying solely on analytical measurements deemed Instrumental Sensory Analysis. The method should be further evaluated and expanded to a large-scale experiment, consisting of a larger sample size of wines, and including all Le Nez du Vin aroma essences.