Manganese content of European wines

The manganese content of 35 different red, white and rosé wines, produced in several European countries, is determined by electrothermal atomic absorption spectrometry. A mean concentration of 2.7 +/- 1.7 mg l-1 (range: 0.5-7.3 mg l-1) is obtained. No statistically significant difference is observed between red and white wines. On the other side, the red Beaujolais wines reveal significantly (p < 0.01) higher manganese content. Since literature data on manganese content of wine could hardly be traced, factors, probably affecting the manganese content of this alcoholic beverage, are discussed.