Flavour-active volatile compounds in beer: production, regulation and control

Abstract

Many classes of compounds have been shown to play an important role in the development of flavour characteristics of beer. This significantly influences its taste and sensory properties, thus affecting its market performance. Despite the intensive research aimed at unravelling the precise mechanism and regulation of flavour formation in beer, current knowledge remains far from complete. Several reviews are available on the general composition of beer and yeast metabolic pathways involved in the production of volatile compounds in beer. However, a limited amount of work has been reported concerning the influence of some of the beer constituents and other important parameters on beer flavour. This paper reviews the current knowledge of the biochemistry behind flavour formation in beer and discusses the different factors that influence its formation and how it can be controlled during brewery fermentation. Copyright © 2017 The Institute of Brewing & Distilling.