Roasted and ground 38 commercial coffees and coffees of known species (arabica, robusta) were characterized by principal component analysis using as variables nicotinic acid, trigonelline, 5-o-caffeoylquinic acid (5-CQA), caffeine, kahweol and cafestol, which are potentially indicative of species. The objective of the study was to assess the relevance of such parameters in coffee discrimination. Nicotinic acid allowed the characterization of roasting degree. Trigonelline and 5-CQA presented variability among arabica and robusta coffees as well as among commercial ones. Thermostable parameters (caffeine, kahweol and cafestol) had high discriminative potential between the species. In general, high levels of caffeine and low levels of diterpenes (kahweol and cafestol) were related with higher proportions of robusta in the products, which were observed by the decreasing kahweol/cafestol ratio and increasing caffeine/kahweol ratio. The use of these new parameters (kahweol/cafestol and caffeine/kahweol ratios) was suggested as tools for assessing the addition of robusta in commercial coffees.
arabica; robusta; pca; kahweol; caffeine
