Elemental and Isotopic Analysis of Wine Provenance

Elemental and isotopic analysis has emerged as a robust approach for verifying the geographical origin and authenticity of wines. By quantifying concentrations of major, minor and trace elements—such as alkali and alkaline-earth metals, transition metals and rare earth elements—alongside measurements of stable isotope ratios (notably δ18O and δ13C), researchers can capture the unique geochemical fingerprint imparted by vineyard soils, climate and winemaking practices. Elements absorbed by vines reflect bedrock composition, soil chemistry and environmental inputs, while isotopic ratios trace water sources and biogeochemical fractionation during grape growth. Multivariate statistical models then integrate these data to classify wines according to region, vintage or grape variety with high accuracy. Such methods are crucial for combating fraud, enforcing appellation regulations and ensuring consumer confidence, and they have been applied across Europe, Asia, Oceania and the Americas. Continuous refinements in analytical sensitivity, data-processing algorithms and reference databases are driving ever more precise provenance assignments and expanding applications to microbial, organic and climatic markers.

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Elemental and Isotopic Analysis of Wine Provenance publication trend

The graph below shows the total number of articles in elemental and isotopic analysis of wine provenance across all publications each year (not limited to Nature Index journals).

Technical terms

Inductively Coupled Plasma–Mass Spectrometry (ICP-MS): A high-sensitivity technique for quantifying multiple trace elements simultaneously by ionising samples in a plasma and measuring their mass-to-charge ratios.

Isotope Ratio Mass Spectrometry (IRMS): An analytical method that determines ratios of stable isotopes (e.g. 18O/16O, 13C/12C) to trace biochemical and environmental processes affecting sample formation.

Chemometric Analysis: Application of multivariate statistical and machine-learning algorithms to complex chemical datasets for classification, pattern recognition and predictive modelling.

Rare Earth Elements (REE): A group of 15 lanthanide elements plus Y and Sc, used as geochemical tracers due to their consistent behaviour in soils but potential alteration during winemaking.

Multivariate Discrimination Models: Statistical approaches (such as principal component analysis and partial least squares discriminant analysis) that reduce dimensionality and distinguish sample groups based on combined variable patterns.

References

1. Determination of Metal Content by Inductively Coupled Plasma-Mass Spectrometry in Polish Red and White Wine Samples in Relation to Their Type, Origin, Grape Variety and Health Risk Assessment. Foods (2023).
2. Can Rare Earth Elements Be Considered as Markers of the Varietal and Geographical Origin of Wines?. Molecules (2023).
3. From Soil to Grape and Wine: Geographical Variations in Elemental Profiles in Different Chinese Regions. Foods (2021).