Improvement of coffee beverage quality by using selected yeasts strains during the fermentation in dry process

- Yeast starters during fermentation improved coffee quality.
- Coffee with special aroma was produced using C. parapsilosis and S. cerevisiae.
- Alcohols, furan and aldehydes were the main compounds found in coffee grains.

Coffee is an important commercial product to Brazil with its consumption distributed globally. The aim of this work was to evaluate the potential of yeast strains as starter cultures for dry fermentation of washed and non-washed coffee beans. Four yeast strains (Saccharomyces cerevisiae UFLA YCN727, S. cerevisiae UFLA YCN724, Candida parapsilosis UFLA YCN448 and Pichia guilliermondii UFLA YCN731) were inoculated separately in washed and non washed coffee cherries and in the control was not added any of the starter cultures. The fruits inoculated were spread on trays and placed on a terrace until the coffee beans reached 11% of moisture. Samples were collected for evaluation of the persistence of the inoculum by PCR-DGGE, and for chemical composition by HPLC and GC-FID. Sensory analysis was performed using the Temporal Dominance of Sensations (TDS) methodology. In all tests the yeasts persisted until the end of fermentation. There was no propionic and butyric acid production in concentrations that could compromise the final quality of the beverage. Forty-eight volatile compounds were identified, some were similar for green and roasted coffee. The most abundant class of compounds was alcohols (11-27%) followed by furan in roasted grains (~ 27%), and aldehydes (~ 13%) in green grains. The coffee inoculated with yeast showed sensations of flavors higher than the control coffee indicating increased sensory quality. The treatment with C. parapsilosis UFLA YCN448 showed dominance rate higher (near 1) for the sensation of caramel. In non-washed coffee those sensations were not pleasant in relation to the washed coffee, except when P. guilliermondii UFLA YCN731 was inoculated, suggesting that washing the fruit before the fermentation process positively influenced the final product quality. A coffee with special aroma of caramel, herbs and fruits could be produced using the starter cultures C. parapsilosis UFLA YCN448 and S. cerevisiae UFLA YCN727 in coffee processed by the dry method.