Optimization of HS-SPME-GC/MS Analysis of Wine Volatiles Supported by Chemometrics for the Aroma Profiling of _Trebbiano d'Abruzzo_ and _Pecorino_ White Wines Produced in Abruzzo (Italy)  
put in contact with a gaseous phase or submersed in a liquid sample [16]. The analytes adsorbed and/or absorbed on the fiber (depending on the coating) can be successively analyzed by thermal desorption in the injection port of a conventional gas chromatography. Apart from the retentive properties of the fiber coating, several other factors (extraction time and temperature, ionic strength, sample volume, fiber conditioning, and desorption conditions) affect the extraction efficiency. Because of the intrinsically multivariate nature of SPME, identification of the optimal experimental conditions for the sample treatment by usual one-factor-at-a-time approaches, which do not consider possible interaction between factors, can be inefficient with respect to the use of time and resources, and may lead to suboptimal performances [17; 18; 19]. Multivariate methods, on the other hand, can provide fast, efficient, and cost-effective approaches for optimization purposes. Design of Experiments (DoE), in particular, allows for the identification of a relatively small number but informative experiments to be carried out in ad hoc designed combinations of the factors [17; 18; 20]. The experimental data collected in the DoE points can then be handled by the Response Surface Methodology (RSM) to model the multivariate dependence of the response from the factors and to predict the response value within the whole experimental domain of interest. DoE-RSM approaches in the development of SPME-based analysis of wines have been previously used for volatilomic characterization [15; 21] and for the determination of specific classes of odorants [22; 23], volatile compounds responsible for off-aromas [24; 25], and pesticides [26]. In this study, we applied a headspace (HS)-SPME method coupled to gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) for the analysis of the aroma profile of two white wines produced in the Abruzzo region (central Italy), _Trebbiano d'Abruzzo_ (TRE), and _Pecorino_ (PEC). TRE is the major white wine produced in this region, obtained by _Trebbiano d'Abruzzo_ and _Trebbiano Toscano_ grapes extensively cultivated in the hills of the coastal territory and some internal areas [27]. PEC cultivars, which belong to the family of _Trebbiano_ grapes as well, although cultivated since Roman times, had been replaced by the more productive _Trebbiano d'Abruzzo_ variety, and it was thought extinct by the mid-20 th century. The rediscovery of _Pecorino_ started in the 1980s, when some cuttings were taken from growing wild plants found in the bordering Marche region and re-implanted. Since then, the cultivation of the _Pecorino_ variety in the Abruzzo and Marche regions has exponentially grown. Today, the most prestigious varieties of the Abruzzo region cultivate both PEC and TRE grapes that are used to produce mono-varietal wines. The main target of this investigation is the development of a method for the determination of the volatile profile of these two wine varieties. Actually, the present study was the preliminary step of a wider investigation, recently published [28], aimed at the multi-analytical characterization of TRE and other ancient wine varieties of the Abruzzo region that have been recently rediscovered, including PEC. The final goal of the multi-analytical characterization of the wine varieties was the identification of chemical markers useful for the varietal discrimination and authentication of mono-varietal wines. In this context, the quantitative determination of volatile components is not required, since the chromatographic profiles collected under pre-fixed experimental conditions, properly handled by chemometrics, are suitable for traceability purposes.