#The chemistry behind the character of bourbon, scotch and ryewhiskeys have captivated long the senses of connoisseurs
whether with smokiness and a whiff of vanilla or a spicy character with hints of caramel and now the emerging chemistry of brown spirits is proving that they have distinct chemical signatures to match the complex combinations of grains barrels aging and other
factors that yield the liquid gold poured into each bottle. With sales of boutique bourbons and other small-batch whiskeys booming the chemical fingerprinting of whiskeys was the topic of a talk at the 246th National Meeting
& Exposition of the American Chemical Society held recently in Indianapolis. Thomas Collins Ph d. who presented the research just a few hours from the home of some of the nation's best-known distilleries noted that his team's work profiling 60 American whiskeys has resulted in a treasure trove of information that could prove useful for whiskey-makers
large and small as well as for regulators. Comparable work he conducted with wines for his doctoral degree gave winemakers a new perspective on how oak barrels contribute to aroma he said.
He suspects distilleries could likewise benefit. Whiskeys'chemical profiles could be used for distillers'quality assurance or process improvement programs said Collins research director at the University of California-Davis Food safety and Measurement Facility.
In addition to that they could be used to help speed up production. I think many of the small distilleries--the craft distilleries that are cropping up--may be interested in doing that.
It's difficult to get a whiskey business going when you typically need to age the product for three or four years or longer.
Another application of our broader project that includes international whiskeys could be helping manage counterfeit and fraud
which is a huge issue for expensive scotches that are exported from Scotland to customers all over the world.
Using chemistry's latest analytical tools Collins'team found that a single whiskey sample can contain hundreds of nonvolatile compounds the ones that tend to stay in the liquid rather than evaporate off.
Added up across multiple samples the number of compounds comes to about 4000 total a scientific testament to the complex molecular mingling that occurs as a spirit ages sometimes for decades in a 53-gallon oak barrel.
The deliberate tasteful chemistry experiment begins with dense American white oak wood usually harvested from forests in the South
--though to the dismay of traditionalists some newer distilleries are branching out to maple wood and softer French oak used in wine-and cognac-making.
Starting with the raw material whiskey-makers tweak dozens of variables to adjust a spirit's character.
They season the wood for barrels and dry it outside or indoors a step that exposes it to fungi and bacteria.
Factories called cooperages bend the wood into barrels and toast them. The insides of bourbon barrels are charred.
Spirits from various combinations of rye corn wheat malted barley and--more recent additions to the whiskey repertoire--oat and millet are added to the barrels.
Then additional factors of temperature humidity and air pressure come into play affecting how deeply the spirits seep into the wood
and interact with its sugars tannins and other compounds that infuse flavors of vanilla caramel and others.
Lastly how long a spirit ages plays an important role in its final character. Of the thousands of compounds in the resulting products the scientists narrowed the field down to 50 to 100 contributors including fatty acids alcohols
and tannins comprising a spirit's signature that distinguishes a Tennessee whiskey from a bourbon.
But not all varieties of whiskey tested were identified easily through chemical profiling Collins noted. Though the ratios of grains used to make them differ significantly bourbons
and rye whiskeys made in the same distillery developed chemical signatures that looked more like each other than those of bourbons and rye whiskeys respectively of another producer.
In some cases there's a distillery fingerprint that overrides the difference in the grains he said.
Collins'presentation was part of a two-day symposium called Polyphenolic Chemistry in Food Science: Flavor Color and Biofunctional Properties.
Its nearly 20 talks cover a wide range of topics from the microbes in the human gut to the potential use of diet to manage inflammatory diseases.
Story Source: The above story is provided based on materials by American Chemical Society (ACS. Note: Materials may be edited for content and length h
#Calculating the carbon footprint of Californias productsnow that California's greenhouse gas cap -and-trade policy is law attention is shifting to recognizing industry efficiency.
Driven by that goal a team of researchers from Northwestern University the University of California Berkeley and the international consulting company Ecofys has spent the last year
and a half developing science-based methods to determine the amount of free allowances California facilities are eligible to receive based on the products they manufacture.
The research team was hired by the state to assist with cap-and-trade design for several key California industries.
The international team is the first in the world to develop product-level emissions benchmarks for the food processing industry huge both in California
The methods to calculate the carbon intensity of individual products--from tomato paste and milk to beer and wine--will help California more accurately determine the number of allowances allocated to these manufacturing facilities.
The project focused on the cap -and-trade regulation's eight covered food industries (tomato canning
and dairy processing being particularly challenging for the researchers) and the industries of petroleum refining and glass manufacturing.
The Northwestern group led by Masanet worked on the tomato canning dairy processing snack foods and wine industries.
and Sustainability worked on the seasonings brewery poultry processing and sugar industries. Ecofys focused on petroleum refining and glass manufacturing.
The work proved to be anything but straightforward stressed Masanet the team's senior expert on energy use and emissions in the food industry.
For example manufacturing one can of tomato paste produces more emissions than one can of diced tomatoes.
A one-size-fits-all approach can't be applied to the food industry said Michael Walker a postdoctoral fellow in Masanet's group and a researcher on the cap-and-trade project.
The bodies of bedbugs she explained are extremely flat before the creatures slurp up a meal of human blood.
The levels of pharmaceuticals and personal care products that we found in food crops growing under real-world conditions were quite low and most likely do not pose any health concern said Jay Gan Ph d. who led the study.
because drought and water shortages in the American southwest and in other arid parts of the world are using water recycled from municipal sewage treatment plants to irrigate food crops as the only option Water from toilets
or effluent from most sewage treatment plants clean enough to drink. Traditionally however sewage treatment plants simply discharge the water into rivers or streams.
and environmental effects of those residual PPCPS especially over whether they might accumulate to dangerous levels in food crops.
Previous studies on PPCPS in food crops were small in scale and conducted in laboratories or greenhouses.
Gan explained that cooking and other processing can destroy PPCPS and he wanted to determine the maximum amounts of PPCPS that consumers might ingest.
They pointed out that irrigation of food crops with treated wastewater is established a well practice in some desert countries.
The authors acknowledge funding from the U s. Department of agriculture's National Institute of Food and Agriculture.
He explained that water pipes use specially prepared tobacco sometimes called shisha--a moist gooey concoction that may include molasses honey
#New weapons on the way to battle wicked weedsa somber picture of the struggle against super-weeds emerged today as scientists described the relentless spread of herbicide-resistant menaces like pigweed
It crowds out crops and drains moisture and nutrients from the soil. Resistant plants thrive
#Purple sweet potatoes among new naturals for food and beverage colorsmention purple sweet potatoes black carrots or purple carrots and people think of dining on heirloom or boutique veggies.
But those plants and others have quietly become sources of a new generation of natural food colorings that are replacing traditional synthetic colors
The natural colors industry for foods and beverages is gaining in value as U s . and international companies move towards sustainable and affordable crop alternatives to synthetic red colors
In addition to adding eye appeal to foods and beverages natural colorings add natural plant-based antioxidant compounds that may have a beneficial effect on health.
One major change he said is the appearance of root crops like black carrots and purple sweet potatoes (PSPS)
PSP anthocyanins have proven to be among the best for food and beverage coloring he said citing fruit drinks vitamin waters ice cream and yogurt.
They are stable for instance and do not break down easily; have superior coloring properties; and have a relatively neutral taste (in contrast to the slightly earthy bitter taste from grape-based colorings.
The pigments however are very difficult to extract. Likewise PSP anthocyanins have advantages over traditional synthetic red food colorings
and the carmine reds extracted from cochineal insects. Those include sustainability and ease of production. Cochineal insects feed on a certain type of cactus native to South america and Mexico.
It takes about 2500 bugs to produce one ounce of cochineal extract used in ice creams yogurts candy beverages and other foods.
which could be used as animal feed in various food applications or as a raw material for biofuel production.
Such processes could encourage development of a domestic natural food coloring industry with agriculture spreads devoted specifically to growing foods for use in making food and beverage coloring.
Currently the United states imports much of the natural food coloring it uses commercially. The small amounts of PSPS grown domestically go mainly to sales of fresh potatoes for the table.
Talcott spoke at a symposium The Chemistry of Functional Beverages which are beverages that go beyond the basics of quenching thirst
or providing nutrition: They prevent disease or promote general good health. Story Source: The above story is provided based on materials by American Chemical Society (ACS.
Ecological theory suggests that these simplified landscapes should have more insect pest problems due to the lack of natural enemies and the increased size and connectivity of crop-food resources.
and the food supply for local people is being reduced. Globally however all ecosystems have a distinct function in world climate he said.
#Pest-eating birds mean money for coffee growersthis is the first time scientists have assigned a monetary value to the pest-control benefits rainforest birds can provide to agriculture.
The latest finding from these researchers suggests that the birds are returning the favor to farmers by eating an aggressive coffee bean pest the borer beetle thereby improving coffee bean yields by hundreds of dollars per hectare.
Coffee beans around the world however are threatened by the pervasive beetle. The insect burrows into the beans
It's the only insect that competes with us for coffee beans Karp said. It's the most damaging insect pest by far causing some $500 million in damage per year.
and thus a greater biodiversity of insect-eating birds fared better under attack from the insects.
A'not-so-glamorous'experimentto quantify the benefit birds provide to plantations the researchers first calculated coffee bean yield--the amount of healthy beetle-free beans that could be harvested--of infected plants that were housed in bird-proof cages
and tapped the city's drinking water supply. For the past four years China has been paying farmers to grow corn instead of rice an effort that Stanford research shows is paying off for people and the environment.
and that about 10%of world food is produced using wastewater. However according to the study there is little data to support such claims.
and assessing the potential of wastewater in food feed and fish production at different scales.
Under-reporting of wastewater generation treatment and reuse might relate to fear of economic repercussions in agricultural trade due to concerns regarding food safety and phytosanitary measures.
because it provides a low-cost source of plant nutrients. Wastewater use in the region is given particularly important that the shortages in supply of phosphate
and potash fertilizers are projected to increase to 3. 5 and 4. 1 million tons by 2014.
and cauliflower) industrial crops forage crops (alfalfa and barely) and highway landscapes may be irrigated with treated wastewater in Kuwait.
Most wastewater goes untreated in Sub-saharan africa where water pollution triggers the spread of waterborne diseases such as diarrhea and cholera.
Given the inherent uncertainty regarding wastewater quality and nutrient content it is not possible for farmers to optimize the use of nutrients particularly
The increasing demand for plant nutrients in Asia provides an incentive for farmers and public officials to develop safe methods for distributing
subjective ratings from breeders and a berry's sugar-to-acid ratio. Recently scientists have determined that the eating quality of blueberries has a much higher correlation to consumer acceptance
and indication of blueberry-like flavor intensity than the traditional measures of sweetness acidity or sugar acid ratios.
The team evaluated one male and one female Rocky mountain juniper tree over the course of 1 year.
Instead of eating broccoli to unlock the risk-reduction nutrients she's asking patients to apply small doses of sulforaphane to their skin.
The research was supported by funding from the Energy Biosciences Institute and USDA National Institute of Food and Agriculture Hatch Project No.
In tests using pig bone marrow-derived mesenchymal stem cells Wilson and lead author Eladio Rivera a former postdoctoral researcher at Rice found that the bismuth-filled nanotubes which they call Bi@US-tubes produce CT images far brighter than those from common
or wasted from field to forka comprehensive new review of food waste in the People's republic of china has concluded that about 19 of every 100 pounds of grain produced in the country go to waste with related losses of water for irrigation and farmland productivity.
Junguo Liu and colleagues point out that food waste is a global problem with an estimated one-third to one-half of food produced worldwide being lost
Estimates suggest that the United states wastes about 40 percent of food crops. The problem is especially acute in China.
and waste of food as a basis for developing policies that could help sustain the food supply in the future.
The overall loss meant the waste of an estimated 177 billion cubic yards of water used to produce food grown
and putting in place monitoring programs to track food waste with more precision. The authors acknowledge funding from the Ministry of Science and Technology of the People's republic of china the National Natural science Foundation of China the Special Fund for Forestry Scientific research in the Public interest the Organization Department of the Central Committee the Fundamental Research
and spread of emerging diseases creating agricultural and pharmaceutical products studying climate change controlling invasive species
Elizabeth Kellogg a professor in the department of biology at the University of Missouri-St louis who was not involved with the study said she is not surprised about the large amount of missing information.
when people are publishing papers you want to document your results as much as you can Kellogg said.
Researchers studied red junglefowl (the wild ancestor of the domestic chicken) in a collaborative project with the University of Oxford Stockholm University
Researchers from the University of Glasgow working in collaboration with the Agri-Food and Biosciences Institute and the Department of agriculture and Rural development Northern ireland sequenced the genomes of 147 M. bovis samples collected over a decade of outbreaks in Northern ireland.
while long distance spread via cattle movements plays a role local transmission mechanisms appear to drive the spread of the disease
Expanding access to healthful foods is an important step in reducing health disparities said Quandt. The objective of this study was to test the feasibility of a CSA program for low-income families in Forsyth County.
They were offered also five educational sessions including cooking classes a farm tour and a grocery store tour with a dietitian that focused on healthful eating on a budget.
The control participants did not receive education or the produce boxes. The researchers observed a significant increase over the summer in the number of different fruits
In a larger group we would expect that the CSA program would make a noticeable impact on quality of the families'diets.
In an overall evaluation of the Farm Fresh Healthy Living program the participants reported positively on the variety of the produce provided the better flavor of the local produce compared with grocery store produce the chance to expose children to new foods as well as the chance to eat foods that were too expensive
to purchase at the grocery store. Some indicated problems with work schedules and transportation in picking up their produce box every week.
This study shows that food from a CSA program has positive effects on recipient households said Quandt.
#Mediterranean diet is good for the mind, research confirmsthe first systematic review of related research confirms a positive impact on cognitive function but an inconsistent effect on mild cognitive impairment.
Over recent years many pieces of research have identified a link between adherence to a Mediterranean diet and a lower risk of age-related disease such as dementia.
In nine out of the 12 studies a higher adherence to a Mediterranean diet was associated with better cognitive function lower rates of cognitive decline and a reduced risk of Alzheimer's disease.
A Mediterranean diet typically consists of higher levels of olive oil vegetables fruit and fish. A higher adherence to the diet means higher daily intakes of fruit and vegetables and fish and reduced intakes of meat and dairy products.
The study was led by researcher Iliana Lourida. She said: Mediterranean food is both delicious and nutritious and our systematic review shows it may help to protect the ageing brain by reducing the risk of dementia.
While the link between adherence to a Mediterranean diet and dementia risk is not new ours is the first study to systematically analyse all existing evidence.
She added: Our review also highlights inconsistencies in the literature and the need for further research.
#Following a Mediterranean diet not associated with delay to clinical onset of Huntington diseaseadhering to a Mediterranean-type diet (Meddi) does not appear associated with the time to clinical onset of Huntington disease (phenoconversion) according to a study by Karen
The Mediterranean diet a diet high in plant foods (e g. fruits nuts legumes and cereals) and fish with olive oil as the primary source of monounsaturated fat (MUSF) and low to moderate intake of wine as well as low intake of red meat poultry
and dairy products is known to be beneficial for health owing to its protective effects in many chronic diseases according to the study background.
and January 2004 who were followed up every nine months until 2010 completed a semiquantitative food frequency questionnaire administered 33 months after baseline.
Our results suggest that studies of diet and energy expenditure in premanifest HD may provide data for both nonpharmacological interventions
#Scientists sequence genome of high-value grape, seek secrets of wines aromademystifying the chemical processes that create a wine's aroma
which the most healthy of red wines are fermented. Though seemingly disparate the twin breakthroughs have a common midwife:
Wines made from the Tannat are known as the most healthy of red wines due to their high levels of procyanidins said to be good for reducing blood pressure lowering cholesterol and encouraging healthy blood clotting.
A wine made with Tannat has twice the tannins of Cabernet sauvignon Merlot or Pinot noir. Sequencing the grape's genome will allow vintners to protect a valuable niche in the world's $300 billion wine industry.
Now the same researchers are probing a secret of nature of potentially great commercial interest as well:
and other environmental factors affect the expression of genes in grapes and the chemistry of wine's aromas and color.
If we can determine through biotechnology the factors that determine a wine's aroma and color we can potentially apply that information to create more pleasing and valuable products.
Tannat is the national grape of Uruguay South america's 4th-largest wine producer with 8500 hectares (21000 acres) of vineyards.
which the country's signature wines are produced. Plantings of Tannat (also known in Uruguay as Harriague) have been increasing each year as that country's wine industry develops.
Though a small player still Uruguay is a rising star in the world's wine industry exporting about 17%of its production (over 20 million litres valued at $15 million in 2012;
a roughly 500%jump in the value of exports from 2004. The main exports are Tannat
The newer vines tend to produce more powerful wines with higher alcohol levels but less acidity as well as more complex fruit characteristics.
#Spread of crop pests threatens global food security as Earth warmsa new study has revealed that global warming is resulting in the spread of crop pests towards the North and South poles at a rate of nearly 3 kilometers a year.
The spread of pests is caused by both human activities and natural processes but is thought to be primarily the result of international freight transportation.
and the increased loss of crops to pests will pose a serious threat to global food security.
Renewed efforts are required to monitor the spread of crop pests and to control their movement from region to region
#Eating whole fruits linked to lower risk of Type 2 diabeteseating more whole fruits particularly blueberries grapes
Greater consumption of fruit juices was associated with a higher risk of type 2 diabetes. The study is the first to look at the effects of individual fruits on diabetes risk.
Our findings provide novel evidence suggesting that certain fruits may be especially beneficial for lowering diabetes risk said senior author Qi Sun assistant professor in the Department of Nutrition at HSPH and assistant professor at the Channing Division of Network
They also looked at consumption of apple orange grapefruit and other fruit juices. People who ate at least two servings each week of certain whole fruits--particularly blueberries grapes
or more servings of fruit juice each day increased their risk of developing type 2 diabetes by as much as 21%.
%The researchers found that swapping three servings of juice per week for whole fruits would result in a 7%reduction in diabetes risk.
The fruits'glycemic index (a measure of how rapidly carbohydrates in a food boost blood sugar) did not prove to be a significant factor in determining a fruit's association with type 2 diabetes risk.
However the high glycemic index of fruit juice--which passes through the digestive system more rapidly than fiber-rich fruit--may explain the positive link between juice consumption and increased diabetes risk.
but not fruit juice as a measure for diabetes prevention said lead author Isao Muraki research fellow in the Department of Nutrition at HSPH.
When we are older we no longer rely on our mother's milk for essential nutrients so in most humans manufacture of the lactase enzyme stops through de-activation of the corresponding gene.
However in situations where food sources became scarce individuals capable of producing lactase as adults would be able to drink the milk of their animals increasing their chances of survival.
and then placed on a diet for one month before and one week after conception. The third group of sheep was placed on a normal
The fourth group was fed a control diet for three months and then these normal weight sheep were placed on a diet for one month before conception until one week after conception.
One week after conception embryos from all of these sheep were transferred to normal weight normally nourished sheep for the remainder of pregnancy.
Liver samples were taken from the lambs born to these ewes at four months of age to examine their genes and proteins.
and is a great threat to global food security. Two of these proteins are already being studied as potential drug targets against other pathogens.
#oewith the world population set to exceed nine billion by the year 2050 improving the security of our food supply is crucial.
The researchers'models show that it will take more than 2000 years for Greenland's indigenous species of trees to spread to all those areas of the country that will have a suitable climate by 2100.
#Spread of farming and origin of lactase persistence in Neolithic Agescientists have brought to light the spread of dairy farming in Europe and the development of milk tolerance in adult humans.
The processing of milk to make cheese and yogurt contributed significantly to the development of dairy farming as this represented a way of reducing the lactose content of fresh milk to tolerable levels making a valuable foodstuff available to the human population.
Until 8000 years ago humans were only able to digest lactose a form of sugar present in fresh milk during childhood
because as adults they lost the ability to produce endogenous lactase the enzyme required to break down lactose.
and their mentors from different disciplines i e. anthropology archeology chemistry and genetics has been looking at the role played by milk cheese
and the ability to model the spread of positive selection of lactase persistence said Burger.
Overtext Web Module V3.0 Alpha
Copyright Semantic-Knowledge, 1994-2011