Abstract
In order to estimate the bitterness intensity of citrus products we applied an adaptative sensory evaluation method, using naringin as the reference for bitterness. Twenty-five untrained subjects participated in this study. Firstly they tasted and positioned 2 naringin references on an unstructured relative-to-reference scaling to define their own bitterness scales. They then evaluated the bitterness intensity of 2 types of bitter orange products (3 distillates and 2 cold-pressed essential oils of bitter orange peels) according to their own perceptions on their own scales. We observed that 2 types of scale use could be distinguished that might be related to subjects’ sensitivity or/and consumption habits to bitterness. As a result, we observed a significant difference in bitterness intensity between the crude cold-pressed essential oil and the debittered one of bitter orange, whereas there was no significant difference between the 3 distillates. This approach makes it possible to take inter-individual differences in subjects’ sensitivity into account. It also provides a way to very simply rate bitterness intensity with subjects who have received no prior training in sensory evaluation.
Highlights
Bitterness is one of the so called “basic-taste” qualities in food and beverages
We observed a significant difference in bitterness intensity between the crude cold-pressed essential oil and the debittered one of bitter orange, whereas there was no significant difference between the 3 distillates
We deliberately worked with a relatively small panel of untrained subjects in order to be in the same conditions as so-called “intern panels” that are frequently used in small-size private companies where only few people can participate in the taste tests and where there is usually not much time to train them
Summary
Bitterness is one of the so called “basic-taste” qualities in food and beverages. Various types of scales have been used to evaluate the bitterness intensity: structured category scale from 1 to 5 [1,2,3] or from 1 to 10 (Pripp et al 2004) or a 15 cm line-scale anchored with “no perception” and “very strong” [4,5,6]. Flavanones represent most of the citrus flavonoids [13], and naringin is one of the most abundant of them [14] found in the albedo of bitter orange peels [15] For this reason, we decided to use naringin as a reference to evaluate the bitterness intensity of the bitter orange essential oil (EO) and its distillate. Since individual bitter taste sensitivity may be related to the consumption of products like coffee or beer [22,23], a questionnaire about consumption habits of some bitter products was submitted to the subjects Citrus products such as EO from citrus peelings or their distillates are often added to foods and beverages to enhance their citrus flavor [24,25]. We discussed the practical sensory conditions and suggest some means of improving them
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