Varietal volatile patterns in young and model-aged white wines: a case study on eighteen monovarietal Italian wine types

During aging, wines undergo substantial compositional transformation through complex reactions impacting wine volatile composition. Most white wines are obtained from aromatically neutral grape varieties, although aging might induce chemical changes of potential relevance for viticulture and enology. This study investigated aging-induced changes in varietal volatile compounds across 18 monovarietal white wine types from nine Italian regions, namely Albana, Cortese, Arneis, Erbaluce, Falanghina, Fiano, Garganega, Gewürztraminer, Greco di Tufo, Lugana, Müller-Thurgau, Nosiola, Pallagrello bianco, Pinot grigio, Ribolla gialla, Verdicchio, Vermentino, and Vernaccia. Results provided for the first time clear chemical clues about the existence of distinct aging patterns for each wine type. Aging treatment enhanced classification complexity while simultaneously reducing intra-varietal diversity. Certain wines developed characteristic patterns and markers during aging. In particular, compounds such as methyl salicylate, cineole isomers, dimethyl sulfide (DMS) and methanethiol were primarily associated with specific varietal types. These findings provide insights for optimizing viticultural and winemaking strategies to manage varietal typicality during aging.