Pattern Recognition of GC-FID Profiles of Volatile Compounds in Brandy de Jerez Using a Chemometric Approach Based on Their Instrumental Fingerprints

Abstract

Brandy de Jerez is a unique spirit produced in Southern Spain under Protected Geographical Indication “Brandy de Jerez” (PGI). Two key factors for the production of quality brandies are the original wine spirit and its aging process. They are significantly conditioned by specific variables related to the base wine and the distillation method employed to produce the wine spirit used to obtain a finally aged brandy. This final beverage is therefore strongly influenced by its production process. The chromatographic instrumental fingerprints (obtained by GC FID) of the major volatile fraction of a series of brandies have been examined by applying a chemometric approach based on unsupervised (hierarchical cluster analysis and principal component analysis) and supervised pattern recognition tools (partial least squares–discriminant analysis and support vector machine). This approach was able to identify the fermentation conditions of the original wine, the distillation method used to produce the wine spirit, and the aging process as the most influential factors on the volatile profile.

Alcoholic Fermentation as a Source of Congeners in Fruit Spirits

“…Numerous studies with publication dates as recent as possible have been published using PCA as a method to distinguish different spirit samples based on their aroma composition [36][37][38][39][40][41][42][43][44][45][46][47]. Other common methods for clustering different spirits based on their aroma composition include hierarchical cluster analysis or heat map and partial least squares [48][49][50][51][52][53][54]. These techniques provide a clear visual representation of the relationships between aroma compounds and their sensory contributions to spirits or between aroma compounds and the origin and type of spirit.…”

“…heat map and partial least squares [48][49][50][51][52][53][54]. These techniques provide a clear visual representation of the relationships between aroma compounds and their sensory contributions to spirits or between aroma compounds and the origin and type of spirit.…”

Discrimination/Classification of Edible Vegetable Oils from Raman Spatially Solved Fingerprints Obtained on Portable Instrumentation

“…In the food sector, fingerprinting methodology has been widely used to solve different problems, such as the authentication and discrimination of olive oils, margarines, and fat spread, or the evaluation of the quality and production process of spirits, among other foodstuffs [27][28][29][30][31]. Regarding the use of handheld or portable devices based on SORS applications, few studies have been carried out despite the great potential of the technique [21].…”