Abstract
The radical-scavenging activity of commercial alcoholic drinks (130 samples of wine, fruit wine, medicinal liqueur, beer, liqueur, whiskey, sake, shochu, etc. ) was evaluated by monitoring the 1,1dipheny1-2-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) radical. The contribution of ascorbic acid and polyphenol to this activity was also determined.
Many of the commercial alcoholic drinks had DPPH radical-scavenging activity. Wines had high radical-scavenging activity, those containing the highest levels of polyphenols having the highest activity. The radical-scavenging activity of fruit wine and liqueur depended on the fruit used, and the darkness of beer contributed to the activity. The DPPH radical-scavenging activity of medicinal liqueur was low, and whiskey, sake, and shochu showed practically no activity. The DPPH radicalscavenging activity and polyphenol content of commercial alcoholic drinks were found to be highly correlated.
