SENSORY AND CHEMICAL CHARACTERISTICS OF COFFEES PRODUCED BY DIFFERENT PROCESSING FROM THE ALTO JEQUITINHONHA REGION

Brazil is the world's largest producer and exporter of coffee. However, the Chapada de Minas region in the Alto Jequitinhonha, in Minas Gerais state, still has little exploration. This study aimed to evaluate the chemical and sensorial characteristics of Arabica coffees from the Alto Jequitinhonha region, produced by different processes. A completely randomized design was performed with 4 processing (assays) and 4 replications, resulting in 16 fermentations. In assay A, the fruits were naturally processed with the skin; in assay B, peeled fruits were dried without the skin, known as semi-dry processing; in assay C, the fruits were peeled and fermented in closed bioreactors for 36 hours; and in assay D, fruits with skin were subjected to fermentation in closed bioreactors for 36 hours. The coffees were subjected to medium roasting. The carbohydrate and organic acid content of the coffees was determined. Sensory analysis was performed by acceptance and CATA methods using the hedonic scale and evaluated by a Q-grader. All coffee assays resulted in special coffees. There was no significant difference in the concentrations of organic acids and carbohydrates among the assays. The coffee from assay D showed the greatest acceptance by the consumers for appearance, smell, and consistency attributes and the highest score by the Q-grader (85.5 points). Coffee from assay A was associated with the astringent attribute by CATA, and the lowest score was obtained on the acceptance test. This work demonstrates that post-harvest processing of coffee can influence the sensory properties of the beverage. Further, coffee from the Alto Jequitinhonha region demonstrated high sensorial quality as demonstrated by high obtained scores.