Yeasts Associated With the Production of Distilled Alcoholic Beverages

Abstract

Distilled alcoholic beverages are produced firstly by fermenting sugars emanating from cereal starches (in the case of whiskies), sucrose-rich plants (in the case of rums), fructooligosaccharide-rich plants (in the case of tequila) or from fruits (in the case of brandies). Traditionally, such fermentations were conducted in a spontaneous fashion, relying on indigenous microbiota, including wild yeasts. In modern practices, selected strains of Saccharomyces cerevisiae are employed to produce high levels of ethanol together with numerous secondary metabolites (eg. higher alcohols, esters, carbonyls etc.) which greatly influence the final flavour and aroma characteristics of spirits following distillation of the fermented wash. Therefore, distillers, like winemakers, must carefully choose their yeast strain which will be very important in providing the alcohol content and the sensory profiles of spirit beverages. This Chapter discusses yeast and fermentation aspects associated with the production of selected distilled spirits and highlights similarities and differences with the production of wine. Table of content: 16.1 Introduction 16.2 Yeasts in production of cereal-based spirits 16.3 Yeasts in the production of Agave and Dasylirion -based spirits 16.3.1 Distilled Agave and Dasylirion spirits: Tequila, mezcal, bacanora, raicilla and sotol 16.3.2 Tequila categories, types and production process 16.3.3 Mezcal, bacanora and sotol categories, types and production Processes 16.3.4 Yeast and fermentation aspects 16.3.5 Recent developments and future prospects 16.4 Yeasts in production of miscellaneous spirits 16.4.1 Yeasts in production of fruit-based spirits 16.4.2 Yeasts in production of sugarcane-based spirits 16.4.3 Yeasts in production of whey-based spirits 16.5 Conclusions & future prospects 16.6 References Process stage Beverage Agave used Volatile compounds References Raw material Tequila A. tequilana var. azul Terpenes, alcohols, furans, acids, aldehydes, esters, hydrocarbures Prado-Jaramillo et al. (2015) Mezcal, Tequila A. angustifolia, A. salmiana A. tequilana var. azul Acids, esters, terpenes Peña-Alvárez et al. (2006) Mezcal A. salmiana subsp. crassispina, A. salmiana var. salmiana, A. angustifolia, A. cupreata, A. karwinskii Acids, lipids Martínez-Aguilar et al (2009) Cooking/ hydrolysis Tequila A. tequilana var. azul Furans, pyrans, aldehydes, nitrogen and sulfur compounds terpenes, alcohols, furans, acids, aldehydes, esters, hydrocarbures Mancilla-Margalli and López (2002) Prado-Jaramillo et al. (2015) Mezcal A. salmianas Furans García-Soto et al. (2011) Fermentation Tequila A. tequilana var. azul Terpenes, alcohols, higher alcohols, furans, acids, esters, aldehydes, hydrocarbures

The potential for Scotch Malt Whisky flavour diversification by yeast

“… Superscripted numbers in the table represent following references: 1 Parfait and Sabin ( 1975 ), Fahrasmane et al ( 1988 ), Lachance ( 1995 ), Fahrasmane and Ganou-Parfait ( 1998 ), and Fleet and Green ( 2010 ). 2 Lachance ( 1995 ), Arellano et al ( 2008 ), Escalante-Minakata et al ( 2008 ), Lappe-Oliveras et al ( 2008 ), Soto-García et al ( 2009 ), Verdugo Valdez et al ( 2011 ), Páez-Lerma et al ( 2013 ), Nolasco-Cancino et al ( 2018 ), and Walker et al ( 2019 ). 3 Fiore et al ( 2005 ), Arrizon et al ( 2006 ), Arellano et al ( 2008 ), López-Alvarez et al ( 2012 ), Segura-García et al ( 2015 ), and Nuñez-Guerrero et al ( 2016 ).…”

“… 2 Lachance ( 1995 ), Arellano et al ( 2008 ), Escalante-Minakata et al ( 2008 ), Lappe-Oliveras et al ( 2008 ), Soto-García et al ( 2009 ), Verdugo Valdez et al ( 2011 ), Páez-Lerma et al ( 2013 ), Nolasco-Cancino et al ( 2018 ), and Walker et al ( 2019 ). …”

A Narrative Review of Sulfur Compounds in Whisk(e)y

“…Whisky, a distilled spirit that is consumed worldwide, is produced from grains such as barley, corn, wheat, and rye by a process of malting, mashing, fermentation, distillation, and maturation. There are five major types of whisky in the world, Scotch, Irish, American, Canadian, and Japanese ( Table 1 ) [ 1 , 2 , 3 , 4 , 5 , 6 , 7 ], which differ in the raw materials and production processes, especially the distillation method. There are two types of Scotch whisky, malt and grain whisky, which are made from malted barley and wheat and/or corn plus approximately 10% malted barley, respectively; the malt whisky is distilled twice using a copper batch still, while grain whisky is produced using a continuous still.…”