Formation of Organoleptic Compounds by Yeast Grown in Continuous Culture on a Defined Medium

Using the technique of continuous culture and defined media, the effect of growth rate and other parameters on the formation of organoleptic compounds was investigated. Difficulty was experienced in obtaining a steady state that gave a good yield of cells and also produced satisfactory levels of esters. The air-flow rate was critical to both parameters, and both were sensitive to levels of oxygen below those that can be detected using available oxygen electrodes. Using these techniques, it was shown that the relationship between growth and ester formation was different depending upon whether the yeast was grown in glucose-limited conditions or glucose excess.