Abstract
Coffee (Coffea arabica L.) of Catuaí vermelho cultivar was harvested in the region of Lavras, state of Minas Gerais, Brazil, in seven different periods. Harvest periods were 14 days apart, the first one was performed on 31/5/1999 and the seventh harvest was accomplished on 25/8/1999. In each period, 480 liters of fruits were taken from 250 plants (cloth coffee) in a same planting field that contained 1750 plants. Also, the harvest of fruits fallen on ground (ground coffee) was accomplished. These fruits were put to dry on cement flat open terraces until the beans reach moisture content of 11 to 13%. Soon afterwards, 3 samples were taken for the undertaking of analysis. The drop of plant fruits increased with the harvest delay. In the cloth coffee, there was increase in the activity of polyphenol oxidase enzyme and decrease in contents of total phenolics and chlorogenic acid, showing better quality. As for the coffee collected from the ground, despite presenting different values, showed a variation similar to the cloth coffee. Comparing the values of different constituents in cloth coffee to ground coffee in the different harvest periods, the cloth coffee presented higher contents of total phenolics and chlorogenic acid and high activity of polyphenol oxidase. The evaluation of beverage quality classified the coffee, in all harvest periods, as hard beverage.
Highlights
Effect of type and harvest period on coffee quality (Coffea arabica L.)
Coffee (Coffea arabica L.) of Catuaí vermelho cultivar was harvested in the region of Lavras, state of Minas Gerais, Brazil, in seven different periods
480 liters of fruits were taken from 250 plants in a same planting field that contained 1750 plants
Summary
Caracterização e localização do experimento O experimento foi conduzido na Fazenda Uvás, localizada no município de Lavras, Estado de Minas Gerais, sendo utilizado cafés (Coffea arábica L.) da cultivar Catuaí vermelho. Colheram-se 480 litros de frutos dessa amostragem, retirados de 250 plantas. No mesmo período foram coletados os frutos no chão (café de varreção), correspondentes às mesmas plantas de cada época, sendo passados em lavador para retirada de impurezas e, em seguida, foram secos e quantificados por volume em relação aos frutos de café do pano também secos. A partir daí, foram retiradas amostras de café de pano e de varreção, para análises, químicas e prova de xícara, nos laboratórios de qualidade do café da Epamig-Ufla e análise de alimentos do DCA-Ufla. A obtenção do extrato enzimático da polifenoloxidase foi feita através de uma adaptação do processo de extração descrito por Draetta e Lima (1976), com a atividade sendo determinada pelo método descrito por Ponting e Josling (1948), utilizando-se extrato de amostra sem Dopa como branco. Já a qualidade de bebida pela prova de xícara foi realizada por provadores profissionais da Epamig-Ufla
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