‘Untypical aging off-flavor’ in wine: formation of 2-aminoacetophenone and evaluation of its influencing factors Original Research Article

2-Aminoacetophenone (AAP) is known as the character impact compound responsible for the so called untypical ‘aging off-flavor’ (UTA) in Vitis vinifera wines. The formation of AAP is caused by an oxidative degradation of the phytohormone indole-3-acetic acid (IAA), triggered by sulfuration after fermentation. Using different radical generating systems (hydroxyl and/or superoxide radical generating systems) it could be shown especially that superoxide radicals are responsible for the formation of AAP. Hereby, a pyrrole ring cleavage of IAA yields 3-(2-formylaminophenyl)-3-oxo-propionic acid (FAPOP), N-formyl-2-aminoacetophenone (FAP), and AAP. Analysis of 32 grape musts and their corresponding wines revealed that wines with a higher superoxide radical scavenger activity are less prone to UTA formation. However, UTA is not correlated with the IAA content of the must or wine. Differences in the release of IAA during fermentation of musts derived from early and late harvested grapes indicate a correlation between the ripeness of the processed grapes, the IAA content at the time of sulfuration, and the UTA formation.