Saccharomyces cerevisae is the main industrially used yeast to produce sugar cane spirits (cachaça). However, other microorganisms are able to produce ethanol using sugar as substrate. This work aimed at determining the sensory profile of cachaça produced through the alcoholic fermentation with Kefir's granules and its acceptance. The acceptance analysis was performed by 57 consumers using a 9 point structured hedonic scale to evaluate the aroma and the general acceptance of the product. The QDA method, with 8 trained tasters, was used to evaluate the following product descriptors: alcoholic aroma, alcoholic flavor, and burning and bitter taste. The evaluated samples did not presented statistical differences (p < 0.05) among each other regarding the aroma acceptance. However, the cachaça produced using bakery yeast presented higher acceptance scores. On the other hand, the analysis of general acceptance presented significant differences (p < 0.05) between the samples for alcoholic aroma and bitter taste. Cachaça produced with Kefir granules presented higher intensity of both of these attributes.
cachaça; alcoholic fermentation; sensory analysis; quantitative descriptive analysis
