Comment analysis of consumer's likes and dislikes as an alternative tool to preference mapping: A case study on apples

This study compares the analysis of consumer's comments resulting from a hedonic test as an alternative to the traditional internal preference mapping. During a consumer test, 87 apple consumers first evaluated six different Golden apple batches on a hedonic scale and then answered to the non-mandatory open-ended questions stating separately what they liked and disliked from each batch. In parallel, an expert panel described the sensory profiles of the studied products. To compare the results obtained by the two studied methods the RV coefficient was calculated and was found to be 0.8656 (p= 0.011). Therefore, the information obtained by the comment analysis of likes and dislikes was similar to that resulting from sensory characterization done by the trained panel. With both methods, crunchiness and sweetness appeared as main sensory preference key drivers, while mealiness was not appreciated. At the same time, some characteristics such as juiciness appeared important for consumers but it was not a significant discriminant attribute for the trained panel. A new method, the Chi-square per cell, was used to deeply analyze the contingency table of the main modalities used by consumers allowing the identification of the significant modalities which described each apple liking. Finally, the distinction between likes and dislikes made the transcription of consumers' opinions easier, without a need of interpretation on behalf of the transcoder.Fil: Symoneaux, Ronan. No especifíca;Fil: Galmarini, Mara Virginia. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; Argentina. Pontificia Universidad Católica Argentina "Santa María de los Buenos Aires". Facultad de Ciencias Agrarias; ArgentinaFil: Mehinagic, Emira. No especifíca

Le "goût" du cidre : Exploration des interactions entre les composés chimiques et les caractéristiques organoleptiques des cidres

The aim of this thesis is to study the influence of procyanidins, sugar, acid, ethanol, CO2 and aroma on the perception of sweetness, sourness, bitterness and astringency of cider. Experimental designs were carried out with model solutions or commercial ciders to study the direct effects and interactions of the chemical compounds on these four organoleptic characteristics.The results confirm the key role of procyanidins, sugar,acid, ethanol on the four organoleptic characteristics. We notably underline the influence of procyanidins concentration and polymerization degree on sweetness and sourness when literature only focused on bitterness and astringency. Our works also indicate an overexpression of bitterness for tetrameric and pentameric procyanidins but only for concentration of 750 mg/L, and an interaction between concentration and polymerization degree for astringency.Except for bitterness, adding CO2 modify sensorycharacteristics of the samples: astringency increases,sweetness decreases for the sweetest solutions and it seems that tasters have more difficulty perceive acidity differences between samples. Finally, the aromatic characteristics can modify sweetness perception of some ciders due to acongruency effect. Indeed, “fruity” notes generate an over evaluation of sweetness when “hay-earthy”aromas lead to a decrease of this taste. Nevertheless,this phenomenon appears to be concentration dependent.L’objectif de cette thèse est d’étudier l’influence des procyanidines, du sucre, de l’acide, de l’éthanol, des arômes et du CO2 sur le goût sucré, l’acidité, l’amertume et l’astringence du cidre. Des plans d’expériences ont été réalisés en solutions modèles et avec des cidres commerciaux afin d’étudier les effets directs des composés chimiques mais également les interactions entre eux sur la perception de ces quatre attributs sensoriels.Les résultats confirment le rôle déterminant des procyanidines,du sucre, de l’acide, de l’éthanol sur les quatre caractéristiques organoleptiques étudiées. Il faut souligner l’influence de la concentration et du degré de polymérisation des procyanidines qui modifient les perceptions sucrées et acides. Ces travaux montrent également une sur expression de l’amertume pour les procyanidines tétramères et pentamères mais seulement pour des concentrations de 750 mg/L, et une interaction entre la concentration et le degré de polymérisation pour l’astringence.Excepté pour l’amertume, la présence de gaz carbonique modifie la perception sensorielle des échantillons testés :l’astringence augmente, le goût sucré diminue pour les solutions les plus sucrées et finalement, il semble que les dégustateurs aient plus de mal percevoir les différences d’acidité entre les échantillons. Enfin, les arômes peuvent modifier la perception du goût sucré de certains cidres par un effet de congruence. En effet, la présence de notes aromatiques « fruitées » est accompagnée d’une surévaluation du goût sucré et des notes « terreux-foin »conduisent à une diminution du goût sucré perçu. Cependant,ce phénomène de congruence semble être concentration dépendante

Assessing the visual aspect of rotating virtual rose bushes by a labeled sorting task

Aesthetics is one of the major parameters for consumers when buying a rose bush. Therefore, managing this quality is important for agronomists. Tools are needed to assess visual characteristics and to find links with architectural plant parameters. Sensory analyses were developed using real plants and photographs as stimuli. With technology and modeling improvements, using virtual plants could presents numerous advantages. This study demonstrated the feasibility of using rotating virtual rose bush videos as stimuli for a labeled sorting task. The virtual rose bush reflected a natural within-crop variability of one cultivar based on bud breaks location and axes length. Two panels of subjects closely linked to the horticulture sector sorted and described 40 rotating virtual rose bush videos. Non-metric Multidimensional Scaling (MDS) results for both panels were similar and allowed us to highlight five groups of virtual rose bushes with their specific sensory characteristics and their own most representative products using a combination of the paragons and the most typical products. This approach revealed that subjects detected high visual differences between products, and that by using rotation, they were able to integrate 3D properties about variations around plant facets. Finally, a labeled sorting task is a powerful method for preliminary exploration of the visual aspect of virtual plants

Nitrogen deficiency increases basal branching and modifies visual quality of the rose bushes

Rosebush architecture resulting from the spatial organisation of the plant axes induces plant shape and consequently within ornamental horticulture context, its visual quality and commercial value. This architecture can be modulated by environmental conditions, particularly in the horticulture context in which the possibilities to control growing conditions are numerous. The objectives of the study were to determine, in young rose bushes, (1) whether short periods of nitrogen deficiency affect branching and (2) whether this effect is sufficient to modify the visual quality of the plant in a sustainable manner. Between vegetative bud burst and the petal colour visible stage of the generated primary branch, young rooted cuttings of bush rose (cv Radrazz) were subjected to one of three nitrogen regimes: (1) no nitrogen deficiency, (2) continuous nitrogen deficiency, i.e. 35 days of N deficiency, and (3) nitrogen deficiency restricted to the flowering stages, i.e. 18 days of N deficiency. After the petal colour visible stage, all three groups of plants were supplied continuously with nitrogen. We observed the morphology of the axes and the kinetics of axillary bud burst. Twelve weeks after the petal colour visible stage, the visual quality of the rose bushes was evaluated by an expert jury. We found that nitrogen deficiencies (1) increased bud burst ratios in the medial and basal zones of the primary branch, (2) delayed the bud burst in the apical zone of the primary branch and (3) had long-term effects on plant visual quality. The continuous nitrogen deficiency regime produced flatter, more asymmetric and less vigorous rose bushes than the no nitrogen deficiency regime. By contrast, nitrogen deficiency during the flowering stages only resulted in more symmetric, taller and more vigorous rose bushes than the no nitrogen deficiency regime. Based on these results, the role of nitrogen on bud burst was discussed and candidate processes at the origin of the visual quality modification were suggested. This new approach combining ecophysiology and sensory assessment of ornamental plants enabled the identification of some early architecture components to be correlated with later visual quality characteristics and then to better target the physiological processes of interest

Current status and perspectives of the official sensory control methods in protected designation of origin food products and wines

Resultado de un trabajo colaborativo dentro del Working Group PDO de la European Sensory Science SocietyProtected Designation of Origin (PDO) is part of the regulated quality schemes in the European Union (EU). Producers of PDO food products and wines have to present EU authorities a technical specification of their product, which includes its sensory description. European regulation 1151/12 establishes that sensory characteristics included in PDO certification must be guaranteed. Nevertheless, there is no standardized approach for the development of sensory control methods for PDO food products, so each entity in charge of controlling the characteristics of the PDO products decides the best way to follow this legal requirement. This paper presents the current situation in Spain, Italy and France in relation to the official sensory control of PDO food products and wines and the accreditation of the laboratories for this control (these three countries represent 68.9% of the total PDO products registered in the EU). This manuscript also shows the main methodologies applied in the official sensory control of PDO food products and wines. The wide diversity of methods used for the sensory control and associated panel management among PDOs manifests the need to harmonize technical criteria and references at European level. This is also urgent, because broad differences in the approaches and requirements for sensory control could bring about unfair competition among PDOs. In this sense, European Sensory Science Society (E3S) has become an EA recognized stakeholder collaborating in a framework in order to prepare a document for the harmonization of methodological approaches and technical criteria for the sensory control of PDO food products and wines

Evidence for different patterns of chemosensory alterations in the elderly population: impact of age versus dependency

The present experiment aimed to explore the interindividual variability in chemosensory abilities among the elderly population. The chemosensory abilities of 559 subjects, aged from 65 to 99 years, were evaluated. Various categories of the elderly, including people who were living at home either without or with assistance, and people who were living in a nursing home, were interviewed. The results revealed that 43% of the sample presented well-preserved chemosensory abilities, whereas 21% of the participants presented a moderate impairment. Of the sample, 33% presented well-preserved olfactory abilities but strong impairment in gustatory abilities and 3% were nearly anosmic but remained able to perceive the salty taste, demonstrating that gustation and olfaction were not systematically damaged simultaneously. The results showed a link between the level of dependence (free living vs. living at home with help vs. nursing home) and chemosensory abilities, independently of the age effect. These results strengthen the hypothesis that the impairment of chemosensory abilities is not only an effect of age per se; rather, it is related to events that are associated with aging. Factors that lead to increased dependence (such as poor health) also lead to an impairment in chemosensory performance

Is the typicality of “Provence Rosé wines” only a matter of color?

Aims: Given the diversity of French dry Rosé wines, Provence Rosé producers (France) wish to evaluate the typicality of their wines in order to better identify their typical characteristics. A clear pink color is one of them but they would also like to identify some specific odors and aromas. Here, we address these issues by: (i) assessing whether the identity of Provence Rosé wines is perceptible by tasting and shared by professionals based on specific odors and aromas (disregarding color as indicator using black glasses), and (ii) evaluating the impact of color on Provence Rosé wine typicality. Methods and results: Complementary methods were used: exemplarity measurements by a panel of wine professionals, sensory evaluation by a trained expert panel, and color assessment. It was confirmed that Provence Rosé wine typicality is based on color because the clearest wines were found to be more typical. However, typicality in odors and aromas was also demonstrated. Using black glasses, wine professionals from Provence agreed on ‘citrus fruit’, ‘exotic fruit’ and ‘fresh floral’ odors and aromas being typical attributes of Provence Rosé wines. Next, when using transparent glasses, the color of the wines clearly modified the perception of exemplarity. Conclusion: There is no single sensory profile of typical Provence Rosé wines. Variability within the sensory profiles of this specific Rosé wine area was observed, but some common aromatic and visual characteristics were identified. Significance and impact of the study: These results could be used as a marketing tool to better highlight the specific intrinsic characteristics of Provence Rosé wines. It will now be interesting to investigate the Provence area further in order to evaluate potential sub-area specificities linked to “terroir” factors