Integrated 16S rRNA Metabarcoding, LC-HRMS Chemical Profiling, and Sensory Evaluation of Brazilian Colonial Cheeses From Vale do Taquari: An Exploratory Assessment of Microbial, Chemical, and Sensory Associations

Abstract Colonial cheese is a traditional Brazilian artisanal product of high cultural and economic relevance in the southern region, produced by small-scale rural farmers from raw milk. This study characterized colonial cheeses from the Vale do Taquari region, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil, through integrated sensory evaluation, microbiological assessment, proximate composition, 16S rRNA gene metabarcoding, and LC-HRMS chemical profiling. Four cheeses from distinct producers were evaluated: one manufactured under industrial conditions with a commercial starter culture and ripened for 60 days; the other three produced artisanally without starter cultures and ripened for 15–20 days. The industrially produced cheese exhibited higher consumer acceptance and lower microbial diversity (p ≤ 0.05), with dominance of the genera Streptococcus and Lactococcus , while artisanal cheeses showed greater bacterial diversity with relevant contributions from bacteria within the Lactobacillales order and other non-starter taxa. However, since cheese D differed from the artisanal samples in starter culture use, production scale, and ripening duration, observed differences cannot be attributed to any single technological factor and are interpreted as exploratory, hypothesis-generating findings. Chemical profiling revealed terpenoids, phenolic compounds, phospholipids, and fatty acids associated with microbial composition and sensory attributes. One artisanal sample was microbiologically non-compliant, including detection of Listeria monocytogenes . Multivariate analyses revealed strong associations among microbial communities, chemical profiles, physicochemical parameters, and sensory acceptance. These exploratory findings support the use of integrated analytical frameworks for artisanal dairy characterization and lay the groundwork for future hypothesis-driven studies on starter cultures and ripening in colonial cheese quality.