It is premature to use Adams-Harbertson as a tool to track
tannin concentration in commercial winemaking. Precision is
the central issue in the growing debate over the use of the
Adams-Harbertson protein precipitation-based methods for
winery quality control. Winemakers’ ability to track changes
in measurements in wine manufacturing is determined by
reliability. The ability to characterize relationships between
wines and the bottled wine markets is a function of validity.
This study demonstrates that Adams-Harbertson
measurements do not meet acceptable levels of precision and
recovery. There is a real danger of making wines that are more
tannic than the measurements report, thereby possibly
reducing the market value of wines that will then exceed the
benchmarks by which consumer critics judge wines.