Relationship between soil geochemistry and grape composition in Tuscany (Italy)

The concentrations of 13 trace elements were determined in soils and Sangiovese grapes collected in vineyard zones of Tuscany (Italy). The purpose was to establish a correspondence among the chemical composition of grape, the geochemistry of vineyard soil and the geolithological features of cultivation zone, and determine the provenance of the grapes by means of their chemical fingerprints. Statistical analysis of Ba, Rb and Sr concentrations distinguished three classes of grapes according to the geochemical and geopedological characteristics of the soils. Grapes with the highest Sr levels grew on high-Sr soils derived from calcareous, calcareousmarly and marly-clayey rocks, whereas the most elevated Rb concentrations characterized the berries cultivated on soils formed from clayey-marly and sandy-marly lithologies. Grapes with the highest Ba concentrations grew on soil derived from arenaceous rocks and carbonate lithologies of evaporitic origin. These findings suggested that Ba, Rb and Sr could be used as fingerprints for the chemical traceability of Sangiovese grapes