Excessive and uncoordinated bitterness of Shaoxing
Huangjiu, a traditional Chinese rice wine, reduces its acceptance
by consumers.
To determine the compounds responsible for this bitterness, gas chromatography–mass
spectrometry and high-performance liquid chromatography were performed
on four types of Shaoxing Huangjiu (Yuanhong, Huadiao, Shanniang, and Xiangxue wine) for targeted quantitation of candidate compounds
known to contribute to bitterness. Calculations of dose-over-threshold
factors revealed that isoamyl alcohol, 1-hexanol, phenylethanol, ethyl
butyrate, ethyl lactate, furfural, histidine, and arginine were important
bitter compounds. Taste recombination experiments demonstrated that
a recombination model constructed using the screened known bitter
compounds showed good similarity with the original sample in bitter
taste. Furthermore, omission experiments revealed that isobutanol,
isoamyl alcohol, 1-hexanol, phenylethanol, ethyl acetate, ethyl butyrate,
ethyl lactate, furfural, arginine, and valine were the compounds affecting
the bitter taste perception. This study provides a certain guiding
effect on the bitterness control and taste improvement of Shaoxing Huangjiu.