High performance thin layer chromatography (HPTLC) analysis of red wine pigments

An HPTLC method has been developed to give qualitative and quantitative estimation of red wine pigments. The samples are prepared by extraction of the phenolic fraction from wine on C18-SPE. The analytical determination uses a chromatography silica plate with adsorbed C18 phase and isocratic elution with mobile phase composed of methanol, water and trifluoracetic acid (55/45/1;v/v/v). This method leads to the clear separation of the three classes of anthocyanins with good statistical repeatability and reproducibility on wines from different vintages. After 520 nm detection of the spots after migration phase it is possible to evaluate the percentage of polimeric pigments.