Comprehensive analysis of dipeptides in alcoholic beverages by tag-based separation and determination using liquid chromatography/electrospray ionization tandem mass spectrometry and quadrupole-time-of-flight mass spectrometry

► A separation method of AQC-derivatized dipeptide was developed by UHPLC using two sub-3μm core-shell type columns. ► Quantification and structural estimation of dipeptide using MS/MS and Q-TOFMS were examined. ► Dipeptide content in alcoholic beverages was quite differ among Japanese sake, beer, and wine. ► Sake contains many species and significant quantities of dipeptides. More than 60 species of dipeptides were found in sake. Fermented foods and beverages contain several different types of dipeptides, which are believed to be important components for taste. To date, however, a method for the comprehensive analysis of dipeptides in these products has not yet been established. In this study, comprehensive analysis of dipeptides in alcoholic beverages was performed by a high-resolution separation method based on the structural characteristics of 6-aminoquinolyl-N-hydroxysuccinimidyl carbamate (AQC)-derivatized dipeptides as well as dipeptide quantification and structural estimation using ultra-high-pressure liquid chromatography–tandem mass spectrometry (UHPLC–MS/MS) and UHPLC-quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry (UHPLC-Q-TOFMS), respectively. Dipeptide content was found to differ considerably among Japanese sake, beer, and wine; UHPLC–MS/MS analysis revealed that many types of dipeptides are present in sake. Dipeptide quantification analysis identified 32 types of dipeptides within the concentration range of 1.1–97.2μM in sake. The analysis was validated by dipeptide recovery of 64.0–107.2% (2.5μM of standard) with a relative standard deviation of ≤33.2% from an actual alcoholic sample. Furthermore, UHPLC-Q-TOFMS analysis suggested the existence of more than 35 types of dipeptides in sake. Thus, by the combined analysis methods, we discovered that more than 60 dipeptides are present in sake. This research is the first report of dipeptide profiling of fermented alcoholic beverages by comprehensive analysis.