Characterization of roasted coffee and coffee beverages by solid phase microextraction - Gas chromatography and principal component analysis

A method that differentiates between different roasted coffees and coffee beverages is described. Characterization is achieved by applying principal component analysis (PCA) to the chromatographic results obtained by solid phase microextraction-gas chromatography (SPME-GC), applied to the vapor phase in equilibrium with coffee (HS-SPME), or to coffee extracts (LS-SPME). The capabilities of this method are illustrated by some examples defining the differentiation of coffee samples of different origins or in mixtures of different compositions.