The effect on the volatile compounds and on the odor and aroma of Hisp&
aacute;nico cheese of a high-pressure (HP) treatment (400 MPa for 5 min at 10
C, applied to 15-day-old cheeses), by itself orcombined with the addition of a bacteriocin-producing (BP) culture to milk, was investigated. HP-treated cheeses showed higher levels of hexanal, 3-hydroxy-2-pentanone, 2-hydroxy-3-pentanone,and hexane and lower levels of ethanal, ethanol, 1-propanol, ethyl acetate, ethyl butanoate, ethylhexanoate, 2-pentanone, and butanoic acid than untreated cheeses. HP cheeses received higher"milky" odor descriptor scores and lower scores for odor quality and intensity and for "buttery", "yogurt-like", and "caramel" odor descriptors. Addition of the BP culture enhanced the formation of threealdehydes, three alcohols, three ethyl esters, and three ketones but decreased the levels of sevenketones and butanoic acid. BP cheeses received higher scores for aroma intensity and for "yogurt-like" and "cheesy" aroma descriptors. Principal component analysis showed the correlation betweendiketones and aroma descriptors "caramel", "buttery", and "milky" and between 3-methylbutanal andthe odor and aroma intensity scores and aroma descriptors "sheepy" and "meat broth".Keywords: High pressure; bacteriocin; cheese; volatile compounds; odor; aroma