How accurate is your sulfur dioxide testing?

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Last year we reported in this journal about the work we were doing to develop test kits for sulfur dioxide (SO2) and some surprisingly high results we got for “low preservative” wines we purchased from supermarket shelves. Since then we have completed the project and now have commercially available test kits for both Free Sulfur Dioxide (F SO2) and Total Sulfur Dioxide (T SO2) for spectrophotometers and automated analysers (the latter commonly known as Discrete Analysers).

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2019 Mornington Peninsula Wine Show

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Last Friday, Vintessential’s Wally Ceccato was pleased to be part of the 2019 Mornington Peninsula Vignerons Wine Show in Victoria. Wally was honoured to help on the day—presenting the award for Best Pinot Gris or Pinot Grigio to the 2018 Willow Creek Pinot Gris. 

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“Low preservative” wines – just how low is low?

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As part of a recent project to develop a new Test Kit for the determination of Sulfur Dioxide for use with Spectrophotometer and Discrete Analysers, we tested a batch of commercially purchased wines labelled “low preservative”, so we could be sure that the Test Kits worked across the full range of sulfur dioxide levels. To our surprise, a number of these wines were not low at all! This is of concern to our industry as some consumers are very interested in and aware of the preservative levels of the foods and drinks they purchase. Is it time for the wine industry to decide what the level of sulfur dioxide should be to qualify for a “low preservative” statement?

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Enzymatic testing in the wine lab

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Enzymatic methods in the wine laboratory are incredibly accurate, fast and safe, helping to generate important information about your wine to ensure the most informed decisions are made. Whether the methods are performed on a benchtop spectrophotometer or an automatic analyzer, understanding the equipment and materials you are working with is essential to getting the right result the first time. Unfortunately, it doesn’t always go to plan, so it’s important to understand what can be causing poor results and how to fix it.

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