Gas-chromatographic Method for Volatile Congeners in Alcoholic Beverages Analysis

Alcoholic fermentation of fruits and cereals is the primary source of alcoholic beverages production. The main component in these drinks is ethanol; but there are also many secondary products like glycerin or acetaldehyde, and mixtures of other higher-order alcohols called “fusel”, also known as congeners. They are important for the characterization of alcoholic beverages and also for forensic medicine purposes, when drivers assertions concerning alcoholic beverages consumption have to be verified in order to prosecute them for driving under influence. We developed a gas-chromatographic method of qualitative and quantitative analysis of alcohol congeners in our toxicology laboratory. The method was validated in terms of linearity, precision, accuracy and detection limits. Our findings are consistent with other from the literature relative to this type of analytical determinations.