Perfil físico-químico e quantificação de compostos fenólicos e acroleína em aguardentes de cana-de-açúcar armazenadas em tonéis de diferentes madeiras

Abstract

The sugar cane spirit is the most traditional and popular distilled alcoholic beverage in Brazil. The total annual output is of 1.6 billion liters, 90% of which is industrially produced and the remaining 10% is home brewed. The practice of storage is becoming common among producers, who seek to increase the value of their product. Casks made of native woods are being used, replacing the traditional oak wood. Therefore, the present study sought to evaluate the physical and chemical quality of the beverage and to quantify phenolic compounds and acrolein in sugar cane spirits stored in casks made from different woods. The physicochemical analyses to which the spirits were submitted viewed to quantify the following components: alcohol, volatile acidity, esters, aldehydes, higher alcohols, furfural, methanol, and copper. Phenolic compounds and acrolein were determined by High Performance Liquid Chromatography (HPLC/UV). Phenolic compounds concentration varied from 0.13 to 14.51 mg L -1 . The compounds verified to be predominant depended on the type of wood used to make the cask. Acrolein in the examined samples was verified to occur in levels below the limits established by legislation with the only exception of a sample in which acrolein level was above the established limit. Most of the samples analyzed (66.6%) proved to be good products for commercialization.