Effect of high pressure treatment and short term storage on changes in main volatile compounds of Chinese liquor

Changes in main volatile compounds of Chinese liquor after high pressure (HP) treatment and following short term storage were investigated. 400 MPa-15 min & 400 MPa-30 min were applied to young liquor. Results from gas chromatography (GC) analysis revealed decreasing trends in alcohols, aldehydes and ethyl acetate immediately after HP treatments, which was in consistent with those in natural aging process; but no significant change was found in acids. However, differences in main volatile compounds between young liquor and pressurized liquors disappeared after two to six months of storage. Principal component analysis (PCA) performed well in presenting overall differences among all liquor groups, which verified our previous findings in GC analysis. This research broadened the knowledge of HP processing on distilled alcoholic beverages and provided an alternative technique for liquor quality modification.