The compositions of the microbial community in fermented grains of Sauce-flavor baijiu produced in different regions have diverse characteristics; however, the reasons for this remain unclear. The present study investigated the contributions of environmental microorganisms to the microbial community as well as the volatile compounds in the fermented grains of Sauce-flavor baijiu produced in the Beijing region using high-throughput sequencing combined with sourcetracker analysis, and compared the differences of environmental microorganism and their roles in the production process of Sauce-flavor baijiu from different regions.The results showed that the environmental microorganisms in the tools were the main contributors of the bacterial and fungal communities in fermented grains during heap fermentation and at the beginning of pit fermentation. At the end of pit fermentation, pit mud was the main environmental source of bacterial community in fermented grains, while tools and Daqu were the main environmental sources of fungal community in fermented grains.Environmental microorganisms thrived on the functional microorganisms in the fermented grains of Sauce-flavor baijiu produced in the Beijing region and thus shaped the profiles of volatile compounds. Environmental microorganisms of Sauce-flavor baijiu in the Guizhou province and the Beijing region differed significantly, which is partially responsible for the distinctive characteristics in the microbial community structure of Sauce-flavor baijiu-fermented grains from different regions.
Keywords: Sauce-flavor baijiu; environmental microorganisms; fermented grains; sourcetracker.