Production and Characterization of a Distilled Alcoholic Beverage Obtained by Fermentation of Banana Waste (Musa cavendishii) from Selected Yeast

Abstract

Banana is one of the most important fruits in the Brazilian diet and is mainly consumed naturally. Losses from crop to final consumer are high and estimated in about 30%. The aim of this work was to elaborate a distilled alcoholic beverage from discarded banana and to compare with commercial trademarks. Initially, yeast strains were isolated from banana fruit and characterized by their production of volatile aroma compounds. The highest aroma-producing yeast isolate was identified by ITS-rRNA gene sequencing as Pichia kluyveri. Pasteurized banana pulp and peel was fermented by the selected P. kluyveri at approximately 10 7 cells/mL. The sugars were converted quickly, and a high ethanol concentration (413 mg/L) was achieved after 24 h of fermentation. The fermented banana must was distilled in a Femel Alambic, and the head, heart and tail fractions were collected. The banana brandy produced had highest concentration of volatile compounds compared to trademarks, such as isoamyl acetate (13.5 mg/L), ethyl hexanoate (0.8 mg/L) and others. The results showed that whole banana must could be a good substrate for fermentation and distillation, and the sensory analysis performed revealed that the produced beverage had good acceptance by the tasters. This study demonstrates the potential of banana as a possible alternative to reduce waste and increase income to farmers.

The potential of sweet potato biorefinery and development of alternative uses

“…Some compounds present in the distilled spirits produced in this study (ethyl acetate, 3-methyl-1-butanol, ethyl decanoate, and 1-decanol) were also found in rum and distilled spirits from other study [ 32 ]. These commonly found aromas provide a sensory quality to the product.…”

“…These commonly found aromas provide a sensory quality to the product. Comparing the VOCs (Table 2 ) identified in sweet potato distillates (LPB1-93, CA-11, and ATCC 26,602) with those of the banana spirit (BS) produced by Matos et al [ 32 ], it was verified that the production of sweet potato distilled spirit is feasible, as it presents characteristic flavors also present in distilled spirits produced from other raw materials such as sugarcane. Many chemical transformations and compounds produced, such as aldehydes, acids, and esters, are related to the maturation and aging process of the distillates.…”

Biogas Production Potential of Mixed Banana and Pineapple Waste as Assessed by Long-Term Laboratory-Scale Anaerobic Digestion

“…Considering the BPP of the mixed substrate and the mixing ratio of 4:1 (PW:BW), this suggests a BW-BPP of 476 L N •(kg VSS) −1 . The lower BPP of BW is attributed to its lower share of carbohydrates compared to PW [27,44,48,50,52,53]. Specifically, the pineapple core is rich in sugar [61].…”

Microbiota of Fermented Beverages

“…Several studies have investigated specific and peculiar features of non-conventional yeasts in winemaking and their interactions with Saccharomyces cerevisiae, the main actor of fermentation [1][2][3][4][5]. Other reports focus on the microbiota of specific ecological niches, such as sherry wines [6], malting and brewing environments [7], and banana wastes [8]. Selected indigenous S. cerevisiae strains coming from Piceno DOC wines were also investigated by Agarbati et al [9], while Capece et al [10] reviewed recent developments on the use of conventional and non-conventional yeast in beer production.…”