On‐line process monitoring of coffee roasting by resonant laser ionisation time‐of‐flight mass spectrometry: bridging the gap from industrial batch roasting to flavour formation inside an individual coffee bean

Coffee is for most us a morning priority to efficiently kick‐start our day. Coffee beans contain small concentrations of volatile and semi‐volatile organic compounds. When coffee is roasted, complex chemical and physical processes occur, which result in the formation of browning pigments and (oh so pleasant and pleasing) flavor compounds. Over 500 distinct compounds can be identified, however, despite extensive research on coffee flavor formation; the knowledge about these processes remains fragmentary. In this perspective special feature article, Dr. Ralf Zimmermann and colleagues demonstrate the online analysis of coffee volatile organic compounds formed during the roasting process by resonance‐enhanced multiphoton ionization time‐of‐flight mass spectrometry (REMPI‐TOF MS). Aromas issues from large‐scale batch and individually roasted beans are compared. Dr. Ralf Zimmermann is professor of analytical chemistry at the University of Rostock (Germany). His main research interests are in the development of new methods and technologies of mass spectrometry and modern chromatographic separation techniques.