Development of a Spirit Drink Produced with Strawberry Tree (Arbutus unedo L.) Fruit and Honey

Abstract

Food safety and diversification of agri-food products are increasingly important. A new spirit drink produced from the arbutus fruit (strawberry tree fruit) and honey was designed, taking advantage of the best features of these two ingredients and limiting the methanol content. This work reports the first approach to its development, considering in particular its chemical composition, especially the volatile components, and sensory properties. Methanol, acetaldehyde, ethyl acetate, and fusel alcohols were quantified and identified by GC–FID/GC–MS. Sensory analyses were performed by a trained panel. Promising results were obtained, showing that the new spirit has features close to those of honey spirit. Significantly lower contents of methanol, acetaldehyde, and ethyl acetate were observed in the new spirit compared to arbutus spirit (359.0 vs. 994.4 g/hL of pure alcohol (P.A.), 20.5 vs. 25.6 g/hL P.A., and 35.5 vs. 53.9 g/hL P.A., respectively), which is advantageous from the food safety and quality perspectives. The total content of fusel alcohols in the new spirit was significantly lower than in honey spirit (261.4 vs. 388.85 g/hL P.A.). Distinct aroma and flavor profiles were examined, but only four attributes were significantly different between the these spirit drinks: dried fruits, unctuous, varnish (although at very low perception), and sweet.

Characterization of a Spirit Beverage Produced with Strawberry Tree (Arbutus unedo L.) Fruit and Aged with Oak Wood at Laboratorial Scale

“…This result can be explained by the short ageing time set (three and six months), compared to what is normally used for other spirit drinks. The values of total acidity and pH (0.17-0.59 and 3.50-4.01, respectively) are within the range of values found in AUS in previous works [6,12,36].…”

“…Higher alcohols (Table 3) are important compounds related to the quality and aroma of spirit drinks and are considered as part of the aromatic skeleton of fruit distillates [42]. The values of control AUS are similar to those previously reported by other authors [6,12,36]. Concerning the butan-1-ol, propan-1-ol, 2-methylpropan-1-ol and butan-2-ol, no significant differences were found between samples.…”

“…The values shown in Table 2 for alcohol strength were above the minimum required by the European regulation [8] and are within the range of values observed in other studies [6,12,36]. Alcohol strength of aged AUS present values ranging between 46.8% and 47.9% and shows an insignificant variation because this essay was made in bottles in which ethanol evaporation did not occur during the ageing process.…”

“…Regarding the AUS sensory profile, few results have been published [12]. This spirit is colourless, with a clear and bright appearance, with odour notes of fruity and dried fruits, and a smooth and soft flavour [10,11].…”

Chemical and physicochemical stability of beverage based integral cashew apple and honey

“…The utilization of various elements with functional and/or medicinal action should be studied, and the product being consumed in conventional diets. Due to its therapeutic importance and a natural sweetener, honey is an alternative to sweeten cashew pulp drinks and serve a market niche formed by sportsmen and consumers, presenting them with healthier food by replacing sucrose with honey (Anjos et al, 2020).…”