The authors are grateful to the Foundation for Science and Technology (FCT, Portugal) and FEDER
under Programme PT2020 for financial support to CIMO - UID/AGR/00690/2019, to Associate Laboratory
LSRE-LCM - UID/EQU/50020/2019, to the strategic funding CEB - UID/BIO/04469/2019 and
BioTecNorte operation (NORTE-01-0145-FEDER-000004). The authors would also like to acknowledge
the funding provided by the approved Project, with reference 02/SAICT/2016/23290, entitled "Characterization
and Valorization of QSE PDO and its ability for health promotion (QCLASSE)", financed by
FCT. S. Falcão thanks National funding by FCT - Foundation for Science and Technology, P.I., through the
institutional scientific employment program-contract.
The composition of Serra da Estrela PDO cheeses (total fat, total protein, salt and free amino acids) was assessed using NIR spectrophotometry and UPLC-DAD-MS/MS. In total, 24 cheeses were acquired from 6 certified cheesemakers located in 5 different municipalities within the delimited PDO geographical region. Cheeses were produced from raw ewe milk of two autochthonous Portuguese sheep breeds, between November 2017 and March 2018, and were acquired after 45 days of maturation. The data include the mean (and respective standard deviations) levels of moisture (%), total fat (%), total protein (%) and salt (%), obtained by NIR spectrophotometry. As well the mean (and respective standard deviations) of free amino acids contents (mg/100 g of cheese, in wet basis) evaluated using a UPLC-DAD-MS/MS method are shown. The latter data include information regarding 8 essential free amino acids (histidine, leucine-isoleucine, lysine, methionine, phenylalanine, threonine, tryptophan and valine) and 9 non-essential free amino acids (arginine, asparagine, aspartic acid, cysteine, glutamine, glutamic acid, proline, tyrosine and serine). Leucine and isoleucine, being isomers, were quantified together. Leucine-isoleucine, phenylalanine and serine were the most abundant essential free amino acids and cysteine, proline and asparagine were the most abundant non-essential free amino acids. Free amino acids contents depended on the cheese producer as well as on the production time-period.
