The use of non-Saccharomyces yeasts for alcoholic beverage improvement and diversification has gained considerable attention in recent years. The effect of pure and mixed inocula (of Torulaspora delbrueckii, Lachancea thermotolerans, and Saccharomyces cerevisiae) on apple mash fermentation has been determined for the production of Hungarian fruit spirit (Pálinka), with a special emphasis on the chemical, volatile, and sensory attributes. The enological parameters were followed during the fermentation process. Sugar consumption and organic acid production were determined by HPLC, whereas the aromatic profile of the distillates was characterized by GC-FID. According to the results, single and mixed cultures showed similar characteristics during mash fermentation. The identified volatile compounds included aldehydes, esters, and higher alcohols. Mixed culture fermentation trials revealed a significantly higher concentration of volatile compounds and better sensorial attributes compared to those exhibited by the pure culture of S. cerevisiae.
Keywords: fruit spirit; mixed fermentation; non-Saccharomyces yeasts; quality; sensory attributes; volatile compounds.