Related Experiment Video
Updated: Oct 18, 2025
05:29
Profiling Volatile Compounds in Blackcurrant Fruit using Headspace Solid-Phase Microextraction Coupled to Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry
Published on: June 9, 2021
4.1K
Modeling grape taste and mouthfeel from chemical composition
Sara Ferrero-Del-Teso1, Alejandro Suárez1, Chelo Ferreira2
1Instituto de Ciencias de la Vid y del Vino (ICVV) (Universidad de La Rioja-CSIC-Gobierno de La Rioja), Carretera de Burgos Km. 6, Finca La Grajera, 26007 Logroño, La Rioja, Spain.
Food Chemistry
|October 3, 2021
Summary
Grape phenolic compounds significantly influence wine’s taste and mouthfeel. Chemical analysis accurately predicts sensory properties like dryness, bitterness, and texture, aiding in grape quality assessment.
Area of Science:
- Enology
- Food Chemistry
- Sensory Science
Background:
- Grape phenolic compounds are crucial for wine sensory attributes.
- Understanding the chemical basis of these properties can improve wine quality assessment.
Purpose of the Study:
- To predict grape sensory properties from their chemical composition.
- To establish models linking phenolic compounds to taste and mouthfeel.
Main Methods:
- Phenolic fractions (PFs) were extracted from 31 grape varieties.
- Wine models containing PFs were chemically and sensorially analyzed.
- Partial Least Squares (PLS) regression was used to build predictive models.
Main Results:
- Significant sensory differences were observed among grape PFs.
- Tannin activity, concentration, and polymerization predicted dryness.
- Large polymeric pigments correlated with "sticky" mouthfeel, and flavonols with bitterness.
- Validated PLS models successfully predicted two out of three sensory dimensions.
Conclusions:
- Chemical composition of grape PFs can predict key sensory attributes.
- This approach offers a method for inferring grape quality based on chemical analysis.
- The study enhances understanding of grape chemistry-sensory relationships in wine.
Related Concept Videos
01:43Gustation
50.1K
Gustation is a chemical sense that, along with olfaction (smell), contributes to our perception of taste. It starts with the activation of receptors by chemical compounds (tastants) dissolved in the saliva. The saliva and filiform papillae on the tongue distribute the tastants and increase their exposure to the taste receptors.
50.1K
01:24The Physiology of Taste
4.8K
The perception of a salty flavor is facilitated by sodium ions within the oral salivary fluid. Upon consumption of a salty substance, salt crystals disassemble, leading to the liberation of its constituents—Na+ and Cl- ions. These ions subsequently dissolve into the salivary fluid present in the oral cavity. The external environment of the gustatory cells experiences an elevation in Na+ concentration, thereby establishing a potent concentration gradient. This gradient propels the...
4.8K
01:20Taste Buds and Receptors
3.1K
Gustation, or the sense of taste, is intrinsically linked to the anatomical structures located on the tongue. This organ's surface, along with the entirety of the oral cavity, is adorned with stratified squamous epithelium. Evident on the tongue are elevated structures known as papillae (singular = papilla), which house the mechanisms for the transduction of gustatory stimuli. Four distinct types of papillae exist, each identified by their unique morphological attributes: the circumvallate,...
3.1K
02:00Molecular Models
41.8K
Physical models representing molecular architectures of chemical compounds play essential roles in understanding chemistry. The use of molecular models makes it easier to visualize the structures and shapes of atoms and molecules.
41.8K
00:49The Tongue and Taste Buds
38.4K
The surface of the tongue is covered with various small bumps called papillae, which either distribute what has been ingested (filiform papillae) or contain the sensory taste (or gustatory) receptor cells (fungiform, circumvallate, and foliate papillae). Embedded within each taste-related papilla are the taste buds—clusters of 30 to 100 gustatory receptor cells.
38.4K
02:37Experimental Determination of Chemical Formula
43.3K
The elemental makeup of a compound defines its chemical identity, and chemical formulas are the most concise way of representing this elemental makeup. When a compound’s formula is unknown, measuring the mass of its constituent elements is often the first step in determining the formula experimentally.
43.3K