Method development and cultivar-related differences of nine biogenic amines in Ontario wines

We have developed a new high-performance liquid chromatographic method usin g pre-column derivatization with orthophthalaldehyde, gradient elution and fluorescence detection to assay the concentrations of nine biogenic amines in wines: histamine, 1-methylhistamine, methylamine, ethylamine, tyramine, tryptamine, 2-phenylethylamine, putrescine and cadaverine. The method shows excellent analytical characteristics. It has been used to measure the conc entration of these biogenic amines in 73 monovarietal wines from five red a nd six white cultivars. All wines were from the Niagara viticultural region of southern Ontario and were certified as to origin. Pinot noir wines had the highest content of total amines, and also of histamine, putrescine, cad averine, ethylamine and 1-methylhistamine, Among the white wines, those fro m Chardonnay had the highest content of total amines and also of histamine, tyramine, methylamine and 1-methylhistamine. It is suggested that longer a geing as well as Sur-lie fermentation (Chardonnay) can account, at least in part, for these findings. (C) 1998 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserv ed.