STUDY OF THE VOLATILE FRACTION OF PARMESAN CHEESE

The aroma fraction of Parmesan cheese was studied on 21 samples of cer tified origin and aging. Volatile compounds were isolated using the dy namic headspace and simultaneous distillation-extraction techniques an d analyzed by means of GC and GC-MS. A total of 167 compounds were ide ntified: hydrocarbons (23), aldehydes (19), ketones (19), alcohols (29 ), esters (24),and acids (25) are the prevalent classes of substances. With the headspace technique the most volatile compounds were sampled , whereas the distillation-extraction technique was Suitable even for long-chain carbonyl derivatives, acids, esters, and lactones, which ar e known to be important components of the flavor. In addition, free fa tty acids and the volatile products of the lactic fermentation (ethano l, acetaldehyde, diacetyl, and acetoin) were determined.