New Method for the Estimation of the Potassium Hydrogen Tartrate Saturation Temperature of Port Wines

摘要

The saturation temperature of potassium hydrogen tartrate (KHT) in port wines was experimentally determined by conductivity measurements as a function of temperature. Based on different fittings of these experimental values, a new method is proposed to predict the tartrate stability of commercial port wines, avoiding a time-consuming experimental procedure. The linear fitting tested for both curves (with and without crystals) may explain why the Wuerdig equation is commonly used to estimate saturation temperature. However, the quadratic/ exponential approach also evaluated enables a better estimation of saturation temperature, as a good agreement with the experimental values was obtained (σ = 0.7℃), in the range of 15 to 35℃.