Fermented natural coffee followed by pulping: Analysis of the initial sensory quality and after six months of storage

Abstract

In recent years, different methods of fermentation have emerged for coffee, with the intention of adding complexity to its flavor. To be able to clearly identify the information from sensory analysis, tools capable of detecting small differences are needed. One such tool is multiple factor analysis (MFA). Thus, the objective of this experiment was to evaluate the effects of fermentation time and storage on the quality of sensory attributes using MFA. The coffee (Coffea arabica L.) samples collected for the study were from the Serra da Mantiqueira region – Brazil. In the present study, two natural coffee fermentation methods were evaluated, one using natural coffee microbiota (NF) and the other using a starter culture (Y), along with different times of anaerobic fermentation (0, 24, 48, 72, and 96h), followed by the pulping of the samples without the use of water. Sensory analysis of fermented coffee samples was performed immediately after drying and after six months of storage in permeable packaging in a refrigerated environment. Thus, the experiment was conducted in an intirely randomized design with a 2 x 5 x 2 factorial scheme (2 fermentation treatments; 5 fermentation times; 2 storage times). The highest scores and the attributes described in higher quality coffees, such as sweetness, acidity, and aftertaste, were attributed to coffees fermented for 96 hours. Results indicated that inoculation of the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae CCMA 0543 was responsible for maintaining the sensory qualities of the coffee fermented for 96 hours after 6 months of storage.