Effect of <i>Koji</i> on Flavor Compounds and Sensory Characteristics of Rice <i>Shochu</i>
Huawei Yuan,
Li Tan,
Yu Zhao,
Yuting Wang,
Jianlong Li,
Guangqian Liu,
Chao Zhang,
Kunyi Liu,
Songtao Wang,
Kai Lou
Affiliations
Huawei Yuan
Solid-State Fermentation Resource Utilization Key Laboratory of Sichuan Province, Faculty of Quality Management and Inspection Quarantine, Yibin University, Yibin 644000, China
Li Tan
Solid-State Fermentation Resource Utilization Key Laboratory of Sichuan Province, Faculty of Quality Management and Inspection Quarantine, Yibin University, Yibin 644000, China
Yu Zhao
Solid-State Fermentation Resource Utilization Key Laboratory of Sichuan Province, Faculty of Quality Management and Inspection Quarantine, Yibin University, Yibin 644000, China
Yuting Wang
Solid-State Fermentation Resource Utilization Key Laboratory of Sichuan Province, Faculty of Quality Management and Inspection Quarantine, Yibin University, Yibin 644000, China
Jianlong Li
College of Food Science, Sichuan Agricultural University, Ya’an 625014, China
Guangqian Liu
Luzhou Laojiao Co., Ltd., Luzhou Pinchuang Technology Co., Ltd., National Engineering Technology Research Center of Solid-State Brewing, Luzhou 646000, China
Chao Zhang
Solid-State Fermentation Resource Utilization Key Laboratory of Sichuan Province, Faculty of Quality Management and Inspection Quarantine, Yibin University, Yibin 644000, China
Kunyi Liu
College of Wuliangye Technology and Food Engineering, Yibin Vocational and Technical College, Yibin 644003, China
Songtao Wang
Luzhou Laojiao Co., Ltd., Luzhou Pinchuang Technology Co., Ltd., National Engineering Technology Research Center of Solid-State Brewing, Luzhou 646000, China
Kai Lou
Solid-State Fermentation Resource Utilization Key Laboratory of Sichuan Province, Faculty of Quality Management and Inspection Quarantine, Yibin University, Yibin 644000, China
Koji is an important starter for rice shochu brewing and influences the rice shochu quality. Consequently, we studied the impacts of koji on the flavor compounds and sensory characteristics of rice shochu using molds Aspergillus kawachii SICC 3.917 (A-K), Aspergillus oryzae SICC 3.79(A-O), Aspergillus Niger CICC 2372 (A-N), Rhizopus oryzae CICC 40260 (R-O), and the traditional starter Qu (control). The effects of koji on the aroma components, free amino acids (FAAs), and overall sensory aspects of rice shochu were studied. These findings indicated that koji significantly affected the rice shochu’s quality. The content of total FAAs in rice shochu A-K (30.586 ± 0.944 mg/L) and A-O (29.919 ± 0.278 mg/L) was higher than others. The content of flavor compounds revealed that the aroma of rice shochu with various koji varied greatly from the smells of alcohols and esters. Shochu A-O had a higher concentration of aroma compounds and it exhibited a strong aroma and harmonious taste compared with the others. This research using taste compounds, FAAs, flavor intensity, and partial least squares regression (PLSR) showed that shochu A-O appeared to possess the best sensory qualities, with elevated concentrations of alcohols and sweet FAAs and lesser concentrations of sour FAAs. Therefore, the A-O mold is promising for the manufacture of rice shochu with excellent flavor and sensory characteristics.
