Relationship between physical properties and sensory attributes of carbonated beverages

Bulk sweeteners provide functional properties in beverages, including sweet taste, bulking, bitter masking, structure, and mouthfeel. Diet beverages come closer to the taste of regular beverages using a blend of high-intensity sweeteners; however, some properties, including bulking, structure, and mouthfeel, remain significantly different. Relating physical properties to sensory characteristics is an important step in understanding why mouthfeel differences are apparent in beverages sweetened with alternative sweeteners compared to bulk sweeteners. The objectives of this research were to (1) measure sweetener profile, Brix, refractive index, viscosity, a(w), carbonation, titratable acidity, and pH of commercial carbonated beverages; and (2) correlate the physical property measurements to descriptive analysis of the beverages. Correlation analysis, partial least squares, canonical correlation analysis, and cluster analysis were used to analyze the data. Brix, viscosity, and sweet taste were highly correlated among one another and were all negatively correlated to a(w). Carbonated and decarbonated pH were highly correlated to each other and were both negatively correlated to mouthcoating. Numbing, burn, bite, and carbonation were highly correlated to total acidity, citric acid, and ascorbic acid and negatively correlated to phosphoric acid. The mouthfeel difference between diet and regular lemon/lime carbonated beverages is small and may be related to overall differences between flavor, acid, and sweetener types and usage levels. This research is significant because it demonstrates the use of both sensory attributes and physical properties to identify types of ingredients and levels that may decrease the mouthfeel perception differences between regular and diet carbonated beverages, which could consequently lead to higher acceptance of diet beverages by the consumers of regular.