The aim of this work was to explore the use of several Mediterranean fruit juices as fermentable substrates
to develop new non-dairy fermented beverages. Microbiological, chemical and sensory features of
kefir-like beverages obtained after the fermentation of juices extracted from fruits cultivated in Sicily
(southern Italy) with water kefir microorganisms were investigated. Results indicated that both lactic
acid bacteria and yeasts were able to develop in the fruit juices tested, but the highest levels were
registered with prickly pear fruit juice. All fruit juices underwent a lactic fermentation, since a lactic acid
content was detected in the resulting kefir-like beverages. Except kiwifruit and quince based kefirs, total
titratable acidity increased for the other experimental products. A general decrease of the soluble solid
content and an increase of the number of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) was also observed after
fermentation. As expected, the fermentation increased the concentration of alcohols. The main
fermentation in KLBs resulted to be yeast-based. Kiwifruit and pomegranate juices possessed a high
antioxidant activity. Esters compounds were present at higher amount after the fermentation, especially
in grape, pomegranate and quince. Aldehydes showed an opposite trend. Changes in colour attributes
were registered as noticeable at human perception scale. The overall quality evaluation indicated that,
among the Mediterranean fruit juices tested, apple and grape beverages were the products mostly
appreciated by the tasters. Therefore, these findings support the possibility to develop fruit-based kefirlike
beverages with high added value and functional properties.