Characterization of aroma compounds in apple cider using solvent-assisted flavor evaporation and headspace solid-phase microextraction

The aroma-active compounds in two apple ciders were identified using gas chromatography-olfactometry (GC-O) and GC-mass spectrometry (MS) techniques. The volatile compounds were extracted using solvent-assisted flavor evaporation (SAFE) and headspace solid-phase microextraction (HS-SPME). On the basis of odor intensity, the most important aroma compounds in the two apple cider samples were 2-phenylethanol, butanoic acid, octanoic acid, 2-methylbutanoic acid, 2-phenylethyl acetate, ethyl 2-methylbutanoate, ethyl butanoate, ethyl hexanoate, 4-ethylguaiacol, eugenol, and 4-vinylphenol. Sulfur-containing compounds, terpene derivatives, and lactones were also detected in ciders. Although most of the aroma compounds were common in both ciders, the aroma intensities were different. Comparison of extraction techniques showed that the SAFE technique had a higher recovery for acids and hydroxy-containing compounds, whereas the HS-SPME technique had a higher recovery for esters and highly volatile compounds.