Coffees (Coffea arabica. L) of the Catuaí Vermelho cultivar were harvested on 1/7/1998, in the region of Carmo do Rio Claro in the state of Minas Gerais, where fruits from a same planting field, containing, on the average, 53.89% coffee cherries, 23.14% dry raisin and 22.96% green beans were utilized. After harvest, the fruits were separated in lots with 180 liters of fruits for each waiting time and divided into three replicates with 60 liters each. These fruits were bagged in braided polyethylene bags and put on a flat open terrace for different periods of time, varying in 0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 and 7days, afterwards the coffee was dried on the same terrace until the beans reached a moisture content of 11% to 13%. Then, an enough quantity of samples was taken for chemical and microbiologycal analyses. The microbial composition with the rise in the waiting time for drying was characterized by an increase in the infection by Fusarium sp, Aspergillus niger and Aspergillus ochraceus in the fruits before drying, decrease in the infection by Cladosporium sp in the fruits and beans, Penicillium sp and Fusarium sp in the beans; with Penicillium sp, Aspergillus niger and Aspergillus ochraceus not showing definite variation in the beans, but with increased values in both. By considering the levels of ochratoxin A, its presence was not detected in any analyzed waiting times for drying.
Coffee; quality; sensory evaluation; fermentations; chemical composition
