Characterization of Volatile Sulfur Compounds in Moutai Liquors by Headspace Solid‐Phase Microextraction Gas Chromatography‐Pulsed Flame Photometric Detection and Odor Activity Value

Abstract

In this study, a method for analyzing volatile sulfur compounds in Chinese liquors has been developed. This method will allow an in-depth study the aroma contribution of volatile sulfur compounds in Chinese liquors. Seven volatile sulfur compounds were identified as potential key aroma contributors for Moutai liquors, which can help to the quality control of Moutai liquors.

Research Progress on Flavor Compounds and Microorganisms of Maotai Flavor Baijiu

“…In recent years, sulfur compounds have been found in various types of Chinese liquors, and more than 20 sulfur compounds have been reported (Chen, Sha, Qian, & Xu, ; Fan, Xu, & Qian, ; Niu et al., ; Zheng et al., ).Chen et al. () detected 13 sulfur compounds in Maotai liquor using headspace solid‐phase microextraction‐gas chromatography‐pulsed flame photometric detection (HS‐SPME‐GC‐PFPD) technique, and found that seven of them had odor activity values (OAVs) greater than 1. It was also found that the five compounds, 2‐furfurylthiol, methanethiol, dimethyl trisulfide, ethanethiol, and methyl, had higher OAVs values, which might be a key contribution to the aroma of Maotai liquor.…”

Optimization and Validation of a Headspace Solid-Phase Microextraction with Comprehensive Two-Dimensional Gas Chromatography Time-of-Flight Mass Spectrometric Detection for Quantification of Trace Aroma Compounds in Chinese Liquor (Baijiu)

“…For instance, the LOD of 3-octanol in this study was 6.98 ng/L, which was 27 times lower than that of HS-SPME-GC-MS, which had a LOD of 189.39 ng/L [37]. Eleven sulfur compounds were quantitatively analyzed using the optimized method, and the LOQ of 1.36 ng/L for dimethyl trisulfide was 198 times lower than the 0.27 µg/L achieved with the GC-PFPD [10]. These results indicated that this method had obvious quantitative analysis advantages compared with GC-MS and even specific element analysis instruments, and it was an effective method for quantitative analysis of trace compounds in Baijiu.…”

“…The highest concentration was 3-methylthio propanol in the Moutai sample, which was 732.65 µg/L, and the lowest concentration was methyl (2-methyl-3-furanyl) disulfide in the Fenjiu sample, which was only 0.44 µg/L. Among them, although the content of furfuryl mercaptan in soy sauce aroma type Baijiu was only 35.20 µg/L, its aroma threshold was 0.1 µg/L in 46% ethanol/water solution [10], and the calculated OAV was as high as 352, which made an important contribution to the aroma of soy sauce aroma type Baijiu.…”

“…For some compounds with a very low response on mass spectrometry, if one-dimensional gas chromatography (1-D GC) has been used to quantify them, it is usually necessary to combine a variety of extraction methods, possibly coupled with multiple detectors, to analyze the same sample, which causes the analysis process to be very complicated [7]. For example, the identification of sulfur and nitrogen compounds has great advantages using a flame photometric detector (FPD) and nitrogen phosphorus detector, whereas other compounds are identified using mass spectrometry (MS) [10]. To overcome these drawbacks, comprehensive one-dimensional gas chromatography (2-D GC) was developed that offers substantial advantages over conventional 1-D GC due to its high sensitivity and chromatographic resolution [11].…”

“…With the development of research on aroma compounds in Baijiu, the study of important trace components has become the focus [19]. Components such as geosmin, β-damascene, and furfuryl mercaptan have a great influence on the flavor of Baijiu [10,20], but there are challenges in the detection of these compounds. The objective of this study was to optimize an analytical procedure based on HS-SPME in combination with GC×GC to quantify the trace levels of aroma compounds.…”