Evaluación de la influencia de los diferentes procesos de secado y los tiempos de cosecha en la calidad del café de especialidad (Coffea arábica L.)

Abstract

Coffee is a widely consumed commercial beverage worldwide and its demand for quality has also grown in recent years, which is why coffee growers seek innovation in their coffee processing techniques, aiming to obtain the highest quality. In this study, the influence of different types of drying and different harvest periods on the concentration of chemical components of green and roasted specialty coffee beans (Coffea arabica L.) was evaluated. The coffee samples were obtained from Hacienda

La Papaya, located at 1700 m.a.s.l. in the Saraguro canton, province of Loja- Ecuador. The main compounds analyzed were polyphenols, amino acids and

aromatic compounds. Sensory analysis was performed using the methodology proposed by the Specialty Coffee Association of America (SCAA). A total of 29 compounds were identified in green coffee beans and an additional 20 compounds in roasted beans. The data was evaluated using principal component analysis (PCA) and 73% of the variability in the compositional data was explained by 3 principal components. No association was observed between the concentration of the biocompounds and the type of drying, while a slight relationship was found with the harvest period without being statistically significant (p>0.05). The drying methods with minimum (001) and medium (002) airflow were associated with the description of the final cupping, where the balance and the general value were the attributes with the greatest influence within the cupping. After the evaluation of the harvest period and the type of drying of green coffee beans, it is concluded that they cannot be considered as predictive scale variables to describe the composition of biocompounds that influence the organoleptic characteristics of coffee, so other variables should be identified throughout the processing and/or cultivation.