Volatile profile evolution and sensory evaluation of traditional skinbag Tulum cheeses manufactured in Karaman mountainous region of Turkey during ripening

Skinbag Tulum cheeses produced by traditional methods in the Karaman region of Turkey were selected as research material. The volatile fraction was determined during 180 days of ripening by SPME–GC–MS technique. In the meantime, sensory evaluation was performed on the 90th and 180th days of the ripening. According to the results of volatile component analysis, 12 carboxylic acids, 9 alcohols, 16 esters, 10 ketones, 2 aldehydes, 4 terpenes, and 3 hydrocarbons were detected. Among them, the dominant groups were carboxylic acid, esters, ketone, and alcohols, respectively. Octanoic and hexanoic acids have been found to be the most typical carboxylic acids in Tulum cheeses. The predominant esters were ethyl acetate and methyl decanoate. Some other notable volatile components were 2-butanone, isoamyl alcohol, and benzaldehyde. For all sensorial characteristics except odor, ripening time was statistically significant and the highest scores were obtained on the 90th day of the ripening.