Obtenção de jun alcoólico: acompanhamento cinético, tratamento térmico e saborização com polpa de acerola (Malpighia glabra L.)

Abstract

Kombucha is a probiotic fermented beverage produced by fermenting a must based on tea leaves of Camellia Sinensis species, usually sweetened green or black tea. For fermentation to occur, it is necessary to inoculate a symbiotic culture of acetic, lactic acid and yeast bacteria called “SCOBY” (Symbiotic Culture Of Bacteria and Yeast) through an already fermented tea with the culture or only with the fermented tea, also known as "starter tea". Despite being a traditionally non-alcoholic drink, between 2017 and 2019, the alcoholic kombucha segment grew by US$10.3 million, reaching the point of being considered the drink of 2020. By changing the carbon source and way of processing the tea used to sweeten and prepare the wort, other forms of the drink can be found that are also well known in the fermented beverage community, but little studied at a scientific level. By varying the fermentative mash using bee honey to sweeten the medium, a lighter, less acidic drink is found that will carry the properties coming from honey, known as Jun. Acerola (Malpighia glabra L.) is a tropical fruit that has been commercially grown in Brazil since the mid-1980s, mainly in the Northeast region, where the following states stand out: Pernambuco, Paraíba, Bahia and Ceará. In the fruit you can find vitamin C (ascorbic acid) and anthocyanin (pigment present in the peel), making it rich in antioxidants, an excellent source of carotenoids and, in addition, it has a low caloric value, which makes it sought after in the marketplace. The kinetic monitoring of the fermentation for the production of Jun, its flavoring with acerola pulp, thermal treatment (pasteurization and boiling) as an intermediate step for the production and kinetic monitoring of the alcoholic fermentation of the flavored Jun base was carried out. The fermentations were followed for a total of 21 days, during this period it was possible to observe the fermentative behavior in the production of Jun base and in the second fermentation, the changes and consequences found in each sample treated for the formulation of the final product.