Abstract
As a deep-processed product of peach, the aroma characteristics of peach spirit have not been systematically studied, and there has been no research on improving the aroma quality through process improvement. Pervaporation technology was used for the first time in the production of peach spirit instead of distillation, and its critical aroma compounds were analyzed compared with distilled peach spirit. Compared to the distilled peach spirit, pervaporation produced peach spirit presented stronger fruity, honey, and acidic aromas, and lighter cooked-apple aroma. Sixty-two and 65 aroma-active regions were identified in the distilled and pervaporation produced peach spirits, and 40 and 43 of them were quantified. The concentrations of esters, lactones, and acids were significantly higher in the pervaporation produced peach spirit than those in the distilled peach spirit, while terpenoids showed opposite tendency. Both of the overall aromas of distilled and pervaporation produced peach spirits were reconstituted successfully by the compounds with OAV ≥ 1. The omission tests identified 10 and 18 compounds as important aroma compounds for distilled and pervaporation-produced peach spirits, respectively. The differences in the key aroma compounds between the two types of peach spirits explained the differences in the aroma profiles.