Cocoa fermentation is the key and most relevant process in the synthesis of aroma and flavor precursor molecules in dry beans or raw material for producing chocolate. Because this process occurs in an uncontrolled manner, the chemical and sensory quality of beans can vary and be negatively affected. One of the strategies for the standardization and improvement of the sensory quality of chocolate is the introduction of microbial starter cultures. Among these, yeasts involved in fermentation have been studied because of their pectinolytic and metabolic potential in the production of volatile compounds. This study was aimed at isolating and characterizing, both sensory and chemically, yeasts involved in cocoa fermentation that could be used as starter cultures from two agro-ecological regions for the cultivation of cocoa in Colombia. The microbiological analyses identified 22 species represented mostly by Saccharomyces cerevisiae, Wickerhamomyces anomalus and Pichia sp. The preliminary sensory analysis of eight of these species showed that Hanseniaspora thailandica and Pichia kluyveri presented sensory profiles characterized by high intensity levels of fruity notes, which could be ascribed to the production of ethyl acetate, isoamyl acetate, and 2-phenylethyl acetate.

可可发酵是在干豆或巧克力生产原料中合成香气和风味前体分子的关键和最相关的过程。由于此过程以不受控制的方式发生，豆类的化学和感官质量可能会发生变化并受到负面影响。巧克力感官质量标准化和改进的策略之一是引入微生物发酵剂培养物。其中，参与发酵的酵母因其在挥发性化合物生产中的果胶分解和代谢潜力而受到研究。本研究旨在从感官和化学上分离和表征参与可可发酵的酵母菌，这些酵母菌可用作哥伦比亚两个农业生态区的可可种植发酵剂。Saccharomyces cerevisiae、Wickerhamomyces anomalus和Pichia sp。对其中八个物种的初步感官分析表明，Hanseniaspora thailandica和Pichia kluyveri呈现出以高强度果香为特征的感官特征，这可归因于乙酸乙酯、乙酸异戊酯和 2-苯乙酸乙酯的产生。