Application of taguchi method in production factors of traditional spice-based ready-to-drink based on sensory responses

Abstract

Traditional spice beverages commercial could not attract the interest of the young generation yet, primarily due to its original taste and need a process to be consumed. To meet the need of the consumers, it is important to develop the ready-to-drink wedang uwuh. Therefore, this study aims to optimize the production process of ready-to-drink wedang uwuh, by combining four factors and three levels based on sensory responses. To address this issue, a fractional factorial Taguchi design (33) was applied to study the sensory responses of time and temperature, as well as the composition of milk powder-sugar using the pasteurization technique. The sensory evaluation conducted involved 36 respondents who were asked to rate the color, aroma, viscosity, flavor, aftertaste, and overall of the ready-to-drink wedang uwuh on a 9-point Likert scale. The results indicated that the optimal combination of the ready-to-drink wedang uwuh was with milk powder at 2 gram and sugar at 20 gram, with the process parameter set at 85oC for 20 minutes of pasteurization. This produced the highest sensory liking score of viscosity, flavor, aftertaste, and overall, at 6.56, 7.25, 6.42, and 7.17, respectively. The development enhances the production of modern-authentic beverages with greater liking by the young consumer.