DBDI-HRMS accelerates the assessment of the volatile signature of cheese from goats fed recycled grape pomace by-products

As a first attempt, this study evaluated the application of dielectric barrier discharge ionization high-resolution mass spectrometry (DBDI-HRMS) for the rapid volatilomic characterization of goat cheese, achieving a reliable analysis within a few seconds. Specifically, volatile profiles were determined by DBDI-HRMS in soft and semi-hard cheeses from lactating Murciano-Granadina goats fed ensiled white grape pomace (WGP) or black grape pomace (BGP) by-products as partial replacements for alfalfa hay in the control (CTR) diet. Following the volatilomic acquisition, a non-parametric ANOVA was performed to identify significant differences in aroma-related compounds. Compared to CTR-cheeses, the WGP- and BGP-cheeses exhibited the most pronounced variations in volatile organic compounds (VOCs), especially after 30 and 60 days of ripening. The main differences were in aldehydes and ketones, i.e., pentanal/methylbutanal, pentanone/methylbutanal, and methylhexanal/heptanone. Significant changes were also observed in branched-chain fatty acids and related esters, i.e., methylnonanoic acid/methylethyl heptanoic acid and ethyl decanoate/isobutyl octanoate. The CTR-cheeses were characterized instead by a higher relative abundance of specific VOCs, i.e., nonenal/nonadienol and dimethyl-pentenoic acid/heptenoic acid. Overall, this trial proved DBDI-HRMS to be a promising rapid and high-throughput technology for detecting changes in odor-active compounds across cheese ripening. Additionally, it highlighted that recycled winery biomass into goat diet seems to modulate the cheese volatilomic profile, likely due to the biomass reshaping microbial-driven metabolic pathways, which effects were particularly evident in the intermediate and late ripening stages.