Cocoa aroma: a review

The nature of the volatile components which constitute cocoa aroma is pretty well today. This aroma results from several factors. If the respective influences of agronomic practices and of the soil are not well studied, those of the variety, the conditions the fermentation, the drying, the roasting and the grinding are already subjects of a number of scientific studies. This bibliographic review intends first of all, to establish the composition of the volatile fraction of cocoa and the contribution of its components to this aroma. In this manner, amongst the 500 components identified, about 60 to 70, evidenced by the olfactometry, appear to be responsible for the odour of cocoa. At a second level, the review is concerned with the development of aroma. The data related to genotypes and the conditions of treatment today permit for the proposal of a general outline of the formation of the volatile fraction, which underlines the fundamental role of post-harvest treatment. Cocoa based aroma is principally constituted of components formed by thermal degradation, the particularities of cocoa are essentially due to volatile fraction from, most likely, during the process of fermentation. (Texte intégral)