The Potential of Co-Fermentation with Pichia kluyveri and Saccharomyces cerevisiae for the Production of Low-Alcohol Craft Beer

The potential health impacts of moderate alcohol consumption have long been debated. The COVID-19 pandemic has heightened public awareness of health concerns, creating a clear market opportunity for low-alcohol craft beer development. This study investigated the possibility of low-alcohol craft beer by co-fermentation with different ratios of <i>Pichia kluyveri</i> (<i>P. kluyveri</i>) and <i>Saccharomyces cerevisiae</i> (SC) according to the established quality indexes. Specifically, this study was conducted to identify the low-alcohol craft beer quality by fermentation kinetics, growth kinetics, apparent attenuation (AA), real attenuation (RA), residual sugar content, alcohol by volume (ABV), and volatile organic compounds. This study demonstrated that the co-fermentation of SC and <i>P. kluyveri</i> in a 1:10 ratio produced an ABV of 2.98% (<i>v</i>/<i>v</i>). In addition, high concentrations of isoamyl acetate and phenyl ethyl acetate revealed banana, rose, apple, and honey flavors, respectively. Overall, this study revealed that the fermentation of <i>P. kluyveri</i> and SC by co-fermentation and the fermentation process by adjusting the yeast composition developed a craft beer with low alcohol content and rich aroma while establishing the quality indicators.