Mead is a not very diffused alcoholic beverage and is obtained by fermentation of honey and water. Despite its very long tradition, little information is available on the relation between the ingredient used during fermentation and the aromatic characteristics of the fermented beverage outcome. In order to provide further information, multi-floral blossom honey and a forest honeydew honey with and without the addition of black currant during fermentation were used to prepare four different honey wines to be compared for their volatile organic compound content. Fermentation was monitored, and the total phenolic content (Folin–Ciocalteu), volatile organic compounds (HS-SPME-GC-MS), together with a sensory evaluation on the overall quality (44 nontrained panelists) were measured for all products at the end of fermentation. A higher total phenolic content resulted in honeydew honey meads, as well as the correspondent honey wine prepared with black currant. A total of 46 volatile organic compounds for pre-fermentation samples and 62 for post-fermentation samples were identified belonging to higher alcohols, organic acids, esters, and terpenes. The sensory analysis showed that the difference in meads made from blossom honey and honeydew honey was perceptible by the panelists with a general greater appreciation for the traditional blossom honey mead. These results demonstrated the influences of different components in meads, in particular, the influence of honey quality. However, further studies are needed to establish the relationship between the chemical profile and mead flavor perception.

The European culinary culture relies on a wide range of fermented products of plant origin, produced mostly through spontaneous fermentation. Unfortunately, this kind of fermentations is difficult to standardize. Therefore, the use of commercial starter cultures is becoming common to achieve more stable, reproducible, and predictable results. Among plant-based fermentation processes, that of the red beet (Beta vulgaris L. var. conditiva) is scarcely described in the scientific literature. In this work, we compared different types of fermentation methods of beetroot and evaluated the processes’ micro-biological, physico-chemical, structural, and volatilome features. A multi-variate analysis was used to match the production of specific VOCs to each starter and to define the correlations between the process variables and volatilome. Overall, the results showed a successful lactic acid fermentation. The analysis of the volatilome clearly discriminated the metabolic profiles of the different fermentations. Among them, the sample fermented with the mixture was the one with the most complex and diversified volatilome. Furthermore, samples did not appear softened after fermentation. Although this work had its weaknesses, such as the limited number of samples and variety, it may pave the way for the standardization of artisanal fermentation procedures of red beetroot in order to improve the quality and safety of the derived food products.

Torulaspora delbrueckii is known for improving the aroma quality in wine and beer, but information for cider manufacturing is scarce. We explored the behaviour of two commercial strains of T. delbrueckii in apple juice fermentation to produce cider and sparkling cider. The influence of the strain, method, and strain–method interaction on the physicochemical parameters of cider was analysed by enzymatic and chromatographic assays. The data were subjected to an analysis of variance and a principal component analysis. Both strains also showed regular fermentation kinetics under pressure. Ethanol, lactic acid, acetic acid, and glycerol were produced with significant differences between strains and production methods. Then, 26 volatile compounds were identified, with higher alcohols being the quantitatively most abundant group. Strain A was associated with a higher production of methyl butanol, 2-phenyl ethanol, and butyric, propionic, and succinic acid esters, while strain B was associated with higher amounts of hexanoic acid, and acetate and valerate esters. In addition, 13 compounds showed significant differences between methods, and 14 were influenced by the method–strain interaction. Our findings encourage the further investigation of the application of T. delbrueckii as a solo player to produce ciders with a unique flavour.

This study aimed to evaluate the rheological properties of doughs with 50% brewers’ spent grain (BSG) derived from a rye-based (RBSG) and barley-based (BBSG) beer added, and the textural profile of the related baked products. Simple model systems using BSG flour mixed with water were studied. Two bakery products, focaccia and cookies, were made as food systems using BSG in a 1:1 ratio with wheat flour (WF). Their rheological properties and texture after baking were characterized. BSG-added dough exhibited viscoelastic properties with a solid gel-like behavior. The addition of BSG increased G′ > G″ and decreased the dough flexibility. BSG addition in baked RBSG focaccia increased the hardness, gumminess, and chewiness by 10%, 9%, and 12%, respectively. BBSG cookies had a 20% increase in fracturability. A positive correlation was found between the rheological metrics of the dough and the textural parameters of BBSG-added cookies. PCA analysis revealed that complex viscosity, G′, G″, and cohesiveness separated BBSG focaccia from RBSG focaccia and the control. Therefore, the rheological properties of BSG dough will have industrial relevance for 3D-printed customized food products with fiber. Adding RBSG and BBSG to selected foods will increase the up-cycling potential by combining techno-functional properties.

Craft breweries are continuously searching for beers made with locally produced raw materials and unique flavor profiles to respond to consumer requests. We explored the behavior of three commercial strains of Saccharomyces cerevisiae in the fermentation of ale beer with a high prevalence of rye malt in comparison to pure barley malt. In total, 34 volatile organic compounds were identified, with esters and alcohols being the quantitatively most abundant classes. The yeast strain appeared to impart more differences in the beer’s volatile profile compared to malt. In particular, S. cerevisiae var. diastaticus Y2 strain was associated with a higher production of esters, while strain S. cerevisiae Y3 was correlated to the higher amounts of terpenes together with the lowest relative abundance of volatile acids. Our findings encourage further investigation of the fermentation performance of several yeast strains to produce beers with unique flavors.