Targeted Study of the Effect of Yeast Strain on Volatile Compounds Produced in Sorghum Beer

An increase in the consumer demand and the availability of gluten-free products has led to several brewers investigating brewing with grains other than barley. The primary grain of choice has been sorghum. These new gluten-free beers have a unique flavor and aroma, which previous research has shown is the result of differences in concentration for key chemical compounds, including ethyl butyrate, butyl acetate, isoamyl acetate, ethyl caproate, hexyl acetate, 1-octanol, nonanal, ethyl octanoate, and ethyl decanoate. This study focused looked at the influence different strains of yeast had on the concentration of these key compounds. Beer was brewed using either barley or sorghum malt extract. The concentrations of these key volatile compounds were determined using Solid Phase Microextraction (SPME) with Gas Chromatography and Mass Spectral (GC-MS) detection. Overall, it was found that the concentrations of these compounds were statistically different in the beers brewed from these two grain types. However, the yeast strain had no significant impact on the concentrations.