Flavor
Please check back later for additional changes
"Flavor" has been defined as "the sum of perceptions resulting from stimulation of the sense ends that are grouped together at the entrance of the alimentary and respiratory tracts". In practice, "flavor" can be considered to comprise four different components: odor, aroma, taste, and mouthfeel. "Odor" is the perception of volatiles by the olfactory mucous membrane in the nasal cavity, after sniffing through the nose and entering the nasal passage. The experience of "aroma" is due to volatilization of compounds by body heat after taking the food product in the mouth. The volatiles reach the nasal cavity in a retronasal fashion, through the nasopharyngeal passage. "Taste" is the perception of soluble substances in the mouth by receptors located primarily on the surface of the tongue. The amount of taste attributes is rather limited: sweet, sour, salty, bitter, umami, and fatty. The term "mouthfeel" covers the haptic perception of the food product on the surface of the oral cavity, for example, the warming effect of alcohol, the sparkling of carbon dioxide, the oiliness of fats, and astringency. Terminology for the description of beer flavor was visualized in the "Beer Flavor Wheel" by Meilgaard et al. Since then, suggestions for adaptations and variations have been published. It must be kept in mind that the olfactory, gustatory, and haptic sensations are interconnected and that the perceived "flavor" is the result of very complex interactions between the senses. For example, higher levels of carbon dioxide in beer increase sourness and decrease astringency, whereas a higher ethanol concentration and higher beer pH increase the bitterness perception. Furthermore, the presence of one substance can enhance or diminish the intensity of the perception of another substance. This way, the intensity of a mixture of components can be higher or lower than the sum of the individual intensities, called "synergy" and "suppression", respectively.[1]
A compound is generally detectable once its concentration becomes higher than its flavor threshold value. The lowest stimulus producing a sensation is called the absolute or detection threshold. If the recognition threshold is transgressed, which is generally higher than the detection threshold, the stimulus can be identified.[1]
See also[edit]
References[edit]
- ↑ a b Baert JJ, De Clippeleer J, Hughes PS, De Cooman L, Aerts G. On the origin of free and bound staling aldehydes in beer. J Agric Food Chem. 2012;60(46):11449–11472.