Flavor generation in cheese curd by coculturing with selected yeast, mold,and bacteria

A large number of microorganisms involved in cheese ripening induce very ty pical flavors that contribute to the cheese variety. As the microflora of c heeses is usually complex, pure cultures can only provide limited data. To better understand the impact of microbial associations on cheese flavor, 39 cocultures of three different yeasts, three Geotrichum candidum, and five bacteria, commonly used in bacteria and mold surface ripened cheese, were s tudied in a cheese model medium. Twenty trained judges established an odor profile by scoring the intensity of 10 attributes. Yeast and bacterial cocu ltures yielded fruity notes, and cocultures including Geotrichum candidum d eveloped sulfur-like odors and cheesy notes. Moreover, some of the microorg anisms contributed differently to the olfactory impact depending on the ass ociated microorganism. Kluyveromyces lactis appeared to induce strong fruit y characteristics, especially when associated with bacteria. Olfactory disc rimination within cocultures that included yeast was better than within coc ultures that included Geotrichum candidum or bacteria.