Alternative aging of cachaça (Brazilian sugarcane spirit): impact of wood chips on antioxidant activity, aging-markers phenolic compounds, volatile profile and sensory evaluation of the spirit

• Grant number: 25/09885-2
• Support Opportunities: Regular Research Grants
• Start date: November 01, 2025
• End date: October 31, 2028
• Field of knowledge: Agronomical Sciences - Food Science and Technology - Food Technology
• Principal Investigator: André Ricardo Alcarde
• Grantee: André Ricardo Alcarde
• Host Institution: Escola Superior de Agricultura Luiz de Queiroz (ESALQ). Universidade de São Paulo (USP). Piracicaba , SP, Brazil
• City of the host institution: Piracicaba

Abstract

This study will be conducted to investigate the effects of wood cubes on the quality of aged cachaça. The aging technology using wood fragments for cachaça spirits has been legally allowed since 2022. Little has been published so far on the chemical evolution of distillates during aging with wood fragments. The cachaça will be prepared from sugar cane juice through fermentation and distillation, and stored in 1-liter bottles during 30 months in contact with 14 1cm-cubes (84 cm2/L) of wood from amburana (Amburana cearensis), cabreúva (Myrocarpus frondosus), castanheira (Bertholletia excelsa), European oak (Quercus petraea) or American oak (Quercus alba). The same cachaça will also be aged in new barrels (250 L) from the same wood species during the same period. The cachaça from both aging technologies will be periodically analyzed for total phenolic compounds, antioxidant activity, color, volatile compounds and aging-marker compounds. We expect that the addition of wood cubes increases the total phenolic content and reveals the ability of phenolic compounds from aged cachaça to scavenge free radicals during storage. Higher antioxidant activity, together with greater enrichment in wood-derived compounds, are expected to be achieved in cachaças stored with wood cubes. Aging using wood fragments may result in higher accumulation of bioactive compounds and antioxidant activity, thus increasing cachaça quality and adding value to the spirit. We expect that the characteristics to be acquired by the cachaça promote a faster and, being cheaper aging, make the alternative technology a promising option for the industry. (AU)