PERCEIVED TEXTURAL DIMENSIONS OF FRUIT‐BASED BEVERAGES

The major sensory dimensions of the mouthfeel of fruit based beverages were determined by principal components analysis and the degree of correlation between mouthfeel characteristics and the taste and pleasantness of beverages was assessed. Untrained college students rated 35 different beverages on 16 different 10‐point scales containing mouthfeel, taste and hedonic terms. Two major mouthfeel dimensions emerged with this set of beverages and they were termed density/thickness and chemical irritant effect. An interdependence between mouthfeel and taste ratings was also found. Sweetness ratings were negatively correlated and sour, salty and bitter tastes were positively correlated with mouthfeel terms describing oral mucosal irritation.