Key Aroma Compounds Identified in Beer and Wine Study

Today, people increasingly seek non-alcoholic versions of beer or wine. Despite boasting different flavors, these two drinks share many aromas, which makes it difficult to produce alcohol-free versions that mimic the real thing. Researchers in ACS’ Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry report on a literature analysis and experiment to characterize the chemical compounds that give beer and wine their unique fragrances. They say their findings could aid the development of flavorful, non-alcoholic substitutes. 

Food and beverage researchers are working to recreate the enjoyable aromas and flavors of beer and wine in alcohol-free substitutes. However, because both beer and wine are fermented, they have similar fragrances, and little is known about which scents evoke the unique character of each drink. So, Xingije Wang, Stephanie Frank and Martin Steinhaus set out to identify the key ingredients that distinguish the aroma of beer from that of wine.

First the team conducted a literature review and identified the average proportions of 29 compounds from beer and 32 from wine that make up the drinks’ aromas. The researchers used these proportions like recipes to concoct standard beverages that smelled like either beer or wine. From there, they tweaked these standards, swapping levels of select fragrances in the beer-like beverage to match those in the wine-like beverage, or vice versa, to test which ingredients influenced the perception of each drink. Trained taste-testers smelled each tweaked sample and evaluated it on a scale of beer-like to wine-like.

The researchers report that the taste-testers found that stronger fruity aromas made drinks smell more like wine. The team also swapped the entire profile of scented compounds from one standard into the opposite drink’s base liquid. They discovered that the scented compounds, rather than the base liquid, made the biggest difference in beer- versus wine-like aroma to the testers. The researchers say their results could be used to develop drinks that better mimic beer or wine while meeting consumers’ preferences for non-alcoholic options.

Reference: Wang X, Frank S, Steinhaus M. Molecular insights into the aroma difference between beer and wine: a meta-analysis-based sensory study using concentration leveling tests. J Agric Food Chem. 2024;72(40):22250-22257. doi: 10.1021/acs.jafc.4c06838

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