by Anukriti Vashishtha, Stephen Whelan, John Byrne and Sinead Morris
Literature Review
The term 'terroir' refers to the combination of all environmental elements that influence a crop's phenotype and impart character to distilled spirits through specific identifiable flavour compounds. While terroir's role in undistilled beverages such as wine and beer is well-established, its recognition in distilled spirits encounters scepticism because of the complexity of distillation and ageing processes that potentially obscure the raw material's original characteristics. However, this notion is now being extended to the realm of distilled spirits, with recent research validating the influence of terroir on the distinctive flavours of single-malt Irish whiskey. The Irish distilling sector is rapidly developing, innovating, and boosting the need for local raw materials, which includes exploring grains other than barley, such as wheat, rye, and maize. With a focus on the burgeoning demand for local ingredients and the diversification of grain in whiskey production, this paper reveals the potential for terroir as a marker of authenticity and quality in Irish whiskey. The review delves into the concept of terroir, its implications on Irish whiskey, both malted and grain-based, the diverse factors that shape the terroir, and the limitations of the concept of terroir in distilled spirits. By emphasising innovative practices and current trends, the research provides insights into the benefits of terroir for agricultural producers and distillers alike, while also proposing directions for future investigations to establish terroir more firmly in distilled beverages such as Irish whiskey.
American Journal of Food Science and Technology. 2024, 12(2), 65-76. DOI: 10.12691/ajfst-12-2-2
Pub. Date: April 06, 2024
by Uchenna Emmanuel Umeohia and Abiodun Adekunle Olapade
Original Research
One of the horticultural crops that is grown and consumed extensively worldwide is the tomato (Lycopersicon esculentum). Tomato is rich in dietary fibers, phosphorus, iron, essential amino acids, minerals, vitamins, and sugars, which underscores its high nutritional value. From consumer perspective, visual appeal, firmness, taste, and dietary value are the attributes that determine the desirable properties of fresh tomatoes. Quality losses after harvest of tomato are attributed to a complex mix of physiological, pathological, microbiological, and mechanical processes. The rate of physiological processes such as respiration, transpiration and ethylene production markedly affect the rate of senescence in fresh tomatoes. Postharvest handling systems are designed to decrease the consequences of these degradation activities on the quality of fresh tomato. To preserve quality and lengthen storage life, management procedures including plucking, cleaning, sanitizing, initial cooling, sorting, and classifying, packing, storage, and shipping are crucial. Low temperature preservation, modified atmosphere packaging, 1-Methylcyclopropene, heating treatment, ultrasound treatment, UV-radiation, edible coatings are some of the techniques for physical preservation of tomatoes, while chlorinated water, oxonated water, electrolysed oxidizing water are chemical methods. The aim of this review paper was to x-ray the quality attributes of tomatoes, as affected by natural processes of its physiology, and postharvest preservation technologies for fresh tomatoes.
American Journal of Food Science and Technology. 2024, 12(2), 42-64. DOI: 10.12691/ajfst-12-2-1
Pub. Date: March 26, 2024