Sensory Assessment

Question 1

Aroma

Answer 1

Olfactory. Come from the volatile compounds released into the air.

Question 2

Taste

Answer 2

Tastebuds. Bitter, sweet, sour, salty, umami. A limited number of compounds impart these tastes.

Question 3

Texture

Answer 3

Soft lining of the mouth, mucous membranes. Mouthfeel. Alcohol, residual sugars, and protein content all contribute.

Question 4

Appearance

Answer 4

Eat with your eyes. Compounds that give color will contribute to beer’s foam and provide fizziness. All will give the customer expectations of how the beer will taste.

Question 5

Sensory assessment

Answer 5

Human assessors evaluate the product. Must rely on human noses and tastebuds to assess flavor where instruments cannot.

Question 6

Sensory analysis

Answer 6

Conducted under controlled conditions by a single sensory expert or a panel of trained assessors to confirm we get the same result each time

Question 7

Sample screening

Answer 7

Assessment of a sample or set of samples to determine if they have desired flavor characteristics

Question 8

Preference testing

Answer 8

A panel is given two or more samples and asked which they prefer. More info may be collected (eg why)

Question 9

Difference testing

Answer 9

Carefully controlled tests to determine if there is. difference between two samples

Question 10

Triangle test

Answer 10

Determines if there is a difference between two samples. A panel is presented with 3 samples: two are the same, one is different. Panel is asked to pick the odd sample out.

Question 11

Tetrad test

Answer 11

A panel is presented with four samples and asked to match the two pairs.

Question 12

Duo-trio test

Answer 12

A panel is presented with three samples: one reference and two test samples. Panel is asked to match one of the two test samples to the reference.

Question 13

Flavor profiling

Answer 13

Uses the agreed upon vocabulary and assesses the intensity (eg Floral 1-5, Malty 1-5, Citrus 1-5, etc).