Katarina Rajkovača

The phenolic profile of wines is often used to evaluate their quality and authenticity. The phenolic composition of twenty-five commercial wines produced in different Croatian regions from eight red and nine white grape varieties was studied. A total of twenty-four polyphenols were analyzed using HPLC-DAD and classified into five groups based on their structure: phenolic acids, flavan-3-ols, anthocyanins, flavonoids, and stilbenes. The red wines contained higher concentrations of phenolic constituents than the white wines, of which gallic acid (11.8–90.3 mg/L), procyanidin B1 (13.7–63.8 mg/L), and catechin (10.5–34.5 mg/L) were the most abundant. In contrast to the white wines, great variability was observed in the red wines, with the autochthonous Plavac Mali and Babić showing the most specific phenolic profiles. The most representative phenolic components in the studied Croatian wines showed strong antioxidant activity. Gallic acid proved to be the most effective DPPH (IC₅₀ = 0.33 µg/mL) and NO scavenger (IC₅₀ = 12.36 µg/mL), while myricetin was the most potent inhibitor of lipid peroxidation (IC₅₀ = 1.68 µg/mL). Our research has contributed to the characterization and varietal differentiation of Croatian wines, highlighting those rich in certain polyphenols as potential nutraceuticals.