During the production of traditional cachaça (alembic´s cachaça), contamination of the fermented must is one
of the factors leading to economic losses in the beverage manufacturing industry. The diversity of bacterial
populations and the role of these microorganisms during the cachaça production process are still poorly
understood in Brazil. In our work, the fermentation process was followed in two distilleries located in the
state of Minas Gerais. The objective of this work was to identify the populations of lactic acid bacteria
present during cachaça fermentation using physiological and molecular methods. Lactic acid bacteria were
isolated in high frequencies during all of the fermentative processes, and Lactobacillus plantarum and L.
casei were the most prevalent species. Other lactic acid bacteria were found in minor frequencies, such as L.
ferintoshensis, L. fermentum, L. jensenii, L. murinus, Lactococcus lactis, Enterococcus sp. and Weissella
confusa. These bacteria could contribute to the increase of volatile acidity levels or to the production of
compounds that could influence the taste and aroma of the beverage.
