Author(s)

Sophie Deterre, Julien Delarue, Cécile Innocent, Pierre Giampaoli

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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.

Unstructured Relative-to-Reference Scaling; Untrained Subjects; Bitterness; Naringin; Bitter Orange Products

S. Deterre, J. Delarue, C. Innocent and P. Giampaoli, "Evaluation of Bitterness Intensity of Citrus Products by an Untrained Panel Using Relative-to-Reference Rating," Food and Nutrition Sciences, Vol. 3 No. 1, 2012, pp. 80-88. doi: 10.4236/fns.2012.31013.