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Occurrence of ethyl carbamate in three types of Chinese wines and its possible reasons

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Abstract

A total of 75 wines including 30 white wines, 31 red wines, and 14 sparkling wines were obtained from several regions in China (Sinkiang, Tonghua, Huailai, Yantai, Changli, Shanxi, Gansu, and Ningxia). Ethyl carbamate (EC) was detected by gas chromatography mass spectrometry. The EC concentration ranged from less than 1.16 to 38.56 μg/L, and the concentrations in 17 wines exceeded the U.S. limit for table wines (15 μg/L). The concentrations of EC increased in the order of white, red, and sparkling wines with the corresponding mean concentrations of 6.12, 9.22, and 14.03 μg/L. The relationship between EC concentration and wine type suggested that EC concentrations in wines might be affected by vinification patterns, most likely due to the difference between EC precursors in different vinification processes. This work provides a novel clue for EC contamination in different wines.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Center for Viticulture and Enology, College of Food Science and Nutritional Engineering, China Agricultural University, Beijing, 100083, China

    Zheng Fu & Jingming Li

  2. Department of Landscape Architecture, Beijing Changping Vocational School, Beijing, 102206, China

    Lili Yang

  3. Ministry of Agriculture, Supervision & Testing Center for Agricultural Products Quality, Beijing, 100083, China

    Liyan Ma

  4. Dragon Seal Winery Company Limited, Beijing, 100143, China

    Xingzhi Liu

Authors
  1. Zheng Fu
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  2. Lili Yang
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  3. Liyan Ma
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  4. Xingzhi Liu
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  5. Jingming Li
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Correspondence to Jingming Li.

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Fu, Z., Yang, L., Ma, L. et al. Occurrence of ethyl carbamate in three types of Chinese wines and its possible reasons. Food Sci Biotechnol 25, 949–953 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10068-016-0155-y

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10068-016-0155-y

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