“Red, red wine goes to my head…”

…and heart, circulatory and lymphatic systems and evidently to my hands!

We’ve been talking about phenols, and polyphenols. Let’s continue with another branch of the phenolic group: anthocyanins (and their sugarless counterparts the anthocyanidins).

Anthocyanins are highly pigmented, water-soluble phenols. They contribute the red, purple and blue colors in fruits and vegetables. The colors that you see are greatly affected by how acidic the fruit or vegetable is. More acidic fruits and vegetables tend to have a more red hue, and the less acidic show tend toward a more blue hue.

There are many different anthocyanins that make up the color scheme. The main types of anthocyanidins (anthocyanins which are not coupled to a sugar molecule) are cyanidin, delphinidin, pelargonidin, peonidin, petunidin, and malvidin. Peonidin is a specific anthocyanidin found abundantly in red grapes, and in red wines.

It has been shown that anthocyanidins and anthocyanins possess antioxidative and antimicrobial properties. It has not been firmly and irrefutably established that anthocyanins and anthocyanidins that carry over into wine continue to exhibit these therapeutic effects in humans, but we believe that in moderation, wine does generally improve overall health and it might just be due, in part to the antioxidant activities of these molecules. The key here is consumption in moderation.

We invite you to do your own “experimentation” using, of course, our red wine as your source of anthocyanins and anthocyanidins! Put on your lab coat and head over to our shopping page and purchase (in moderation) your materials!