Maceration duration and grape variety: key factors in phenolic compound enrichment of Montenegrin red wine

The present study focuses on the effect of increasing maceration times (0, 2, 4, 6, and 10 days) on the extraction of phenolic compounds into two Montenegrin wines made with the autochthonous varieties Vranac and Kratošija. Significant differences were found in the total acidity, pH and alcohol content of these two varietal wines, which showed different responses to the maceration time. The total content of phenolic compounds (phenols, tannins and anthocyanins) increased significantly with longer maceration time, which is consistent with the existing literature. Specifically, the longest maceration time (10 days) consistently resulted in the highest levels of all parameters analysed. In addition, the anthocyanin profile determined by HPLC showed the interaction between maceration time and variety on the concentrations of the individual anthocyanins. Compared to Kratošija, Vranac wines consistently showed higher anthocyanin contents. In addition, the structural analysis of the tannins revealed that the mean degree of polymerisation (mDP), the percentage of prodelphinidins (%PD) and the percentage of galloylation (%Gall) changed with increasing maceration time. Significant correlations were found between the antioxidant activity values and the analytical parameters, including the structural characteristics of the tannins. This study provides important information on the interaction between maceration time and various varietal characteristics that influence the phenolic composition of Montenegrin wines and contributes to a deeper understanding of winemaking practices and wine quality.