ORIGINAL RESEARCH article
Front. Microbiol.
Sec. Food Microbiology
Temporal Heterogeneity of Microbial Ecosystems and its Formation Mechanisms in Moutai-flavor Baijiu Fermentation
Provisionally accepted
Zhiyu Zhu1
Xiaobo Li1Tongbi Cui1Zongxiao Chen1Yong Liu1Xiao Chen1Yuan Tian1
Yu Mu2Yuzhang Wu2Qing Ji2Sui Yan1*Yanbo Cheng1*- 1Kweichow Moutai Co. Ltd., Guiyang, China
- 2Moutai Institute, Renhuai, China
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The influence of workshop age on Moutai-flavor Baijiu fermentation is recognized, but the mechanisms driving microbial community shifts remain unclear. Understanding how the physical environment selects for specific microbiota is crucial for optimizing new workshops.Through 16S/ITS sequencing of pit-entry fermented grains, Daqu, air, and cooling yards in 5-, 10-, 20-, and 30-year-old workshops, Lactobacillus emerged as a key discriminant genus, increasing from 15.02% (5-year) to 35.59% (30-year). SourceTracker analysis revealed the cooling yard as the primary microbial source, contributing 54.2% on average to fermented grains. CO2-TPD analysis showed a 3.6-fold reduction in cooling yard surface basicity (from 0.11 to 0.03 mmol·g-1) over 30 years, resulting in high abundances (>10%) of alkalotolerant bacteria (e.g., Alkalibacterium, Nesterenkonia) and low Lactobacillus (2.17%). Nesterenkonia was also a biomarker in 5-year fermented grains. This confirms cooling yard surface basicity drives microecological differences, revealing how long-term production practices domesticate microbial communities and providing a theoretical basis for new workshop adaptation.
Keywords: Cooling yard surface basicity, fermentation microbiome, high-throughput sequencing, Microbial community adaptation, Moutai-flavor Baijiu, workshop age
Received: 28 Jan 2026; Accepted: 16 Feb 2026.
Copyright: © 2026 Zhu, Li, Cui, Chen, Liu, Chen, Tian, Mu, Wu, Ji, Yan and Cheng. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
* Correspondence:
Sui Yan
Yanbo Cheng
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