Summary Passion fruit is the fourth most consumed fruit by the Brazilian population, especially in the form of juice, usually associated with the addition of sucrose. This study aimed to evaluate the ideal sucrose concentration, and its impact on the consumer's acceptance of passion fruit nectar, sweetened with non‐caloric sweeteners as sucrose replacers in five Brazilian geographic regions. The acceptance scores evaluated by anova and Tukey's Honestly Significant Difference test indicated that sucralose‐sweetened samples were the most accepted, with no differences from the sucrose‐sweetened sample (P < 0.05), with a positive purchase intention in the five regions studied (>50%). However, differences in the acceptance scores were observed for the other sweeteners among the regions. Despite the difference in the sweetness perception among the Brazilian geographic regions, it may not be the only determining factor in the acceptance of passion fruit nectar sweetened with non‐caloric sweeteners.

BACKGROUND: Tamarind pulp contains polyphenolic compounds that exert antioxidant and anti-inflammatory effects with a positive impact on human health. The elaboration of a tamarind-based functional beverage, without the addition of sucrose, can be an alternative to traditional caloric beverages. This study aimed to evaluate the sensory profile and time intensity of a functional tamarind beverage containing artificial and natural non-nutritive sweeteners. RESULTS: The results of the acceptance test, check-all-that-apply, and time-intensity tests showed that there were no statistically significant differences between the means of samples sweetened with sucralose and samples sweetened with sucrose for attributes relating to appearance, aroma, flavor, or texture, or for overall impression. Samples with natural sweeteners had lower means for overall product impression and a lower percentage of purchase intention. The perception of astringency, bitter taste, and bitter aftertaste may be linked to the lower global impression of the product. The descriptors 'tamarind flavor' and 'refreshment sensation' were higher in products that were more liked. The sample sweetened with stevia showed higher levels of sweetness, bitterness, and longer sweet stimulus duration in the time-intensity test. CONCLUSION: The sample sweetened with sucralose was the best alternative to sucrose in the functional tamarind beverage. The analyzed sweeteners did not show changes in the perception of the natural characteristics of the fruit used, such as tamarind flavor, refreshment sensation, and astringency. However, the attributes related to sweet and bitter aftertaste experienced in samples with natural sweeteners may have influenced the reduction in the intention to purchase the product.

This study determined the dynamic sensory profile and consumer acceptance of blackberry nectar with different sweeteners. The ideal scale was used to determine the ideal sweetness of the sucrose and the magnitude estimation method for the equivalent sweetness of the sweeteners. The sensory profile was determined by time-intensity analyses with trained panelists. This study determined the dynamic sensory profile and consumer acceptance of blackberry nectar with different sweeteners. First, to determine the concentration of sucrose to promote optimal sweetness in blackberry nectar, a study was carried out by consumers, who used an unstructured 9 cm “Ideal Scale”, ranging from the extreme left as “extremely less sweet than ideal” to the extreme right as “extremely sweet than ideal”, with the center of the scale being the ideal sweetness point. Then, the magnitude estimation method was applied to determine the concentration of each sweetener studied in order to obtain the same sensation of ideal sweetness in the blackberry nectar. The sensory profile of blackberry nectar in the same equi-sweetness was determined by time-intensity analysis with trained assessors and CATA (Check-All-that-Apply) with consumers. According to our results and the opinion of the involved consumers, the optimal sucrose concentration in blackberry nectar was 9.3%, and the sweetener concentrations equivalent to sucrose were 0.015% of sucralose, 0.052% of aspartame and 0.09% of stevia with different rebaudioside A concentrations. Time intensity and overall liking data were statistically analyzed by partial least squares regression (PLSR), thus generating the temporal preference drivers for blackberry nectar. The results showed that the sucralose and tasteva sweeteners have a temporal profile closer to sucrose, being characterized by a lower intensity and duration of sweet and bitter taste, with a positive impact on consumer acceptance. Concomitant results were found by the CATA analysis, indicating that the attributes of blackberry aroma, blackberry flavor, sweet taste, and brightness also have a positive impact and stand out in the samples with sucrose, sucralose, and tasteva. The samples sweetened with stevia were characterized by a greater intensity of bitter taste and the presence of a sweet and bitter aftertaste, with a negative impact on acceptance. The different rebaudioside A concentrations in stevia (78%, 92%, and 97%) did not interfere with consumer acceptance.

Different thermal environments can affect human productivity with repercussions on cognitive ability and physiological changes. However, the direct effect of room temperature on the sensations of food in the mouth during consumption is not yet well established. This study aimed to investigate the effect of indoor temperature on dominant sensations during intake of a beverage containing non-nutritive sweeteners. The temporal dominance of sensations (TDS) technique was used to evaluate seven functional beverages with different non-nutritive sweeteners. Sixty consumers participated in the test, attending 3 days of laboratory analysis with strictly controlled indoor temperatures (20, 24, and 26°C). The indoor temperature affected the TDS curves of four functional beverages, with emphasis on the colder environment, which accentuated the sensation of bitter taste in the samples sweetened with stevia and neohesperidin. In the warmer environment, a TDS peak of fruit flavor was observed for the sucrose-sweetened sample, while the neotamesweetened sample presented lower dominance rate for sweetness. The sensory performance of the samples sweetened with non-nutritive sweeteners, determined by the dominance rate of attributes, can change over time in different indoor temperatures.

Excess adipose tissue is associated with basic tastes perception change, which can negatively affect food choices. However, the effect of overweight and obesity on sensory perception is not clearly explained in the literature yielding heterogeneous results. The present investigation aimed to investigate the temporal dominance of sweet taste according to body mass index (BMI) classification in adults during the ingestion of five passion fruit nectar samples prepared with different sucrose concentrations. The temporal dominance of sensations methodology was applied, which allowed the representation of the stimuli assessed in dominance curves, considering a significant difference in Fisher's exact test (p ≤ 0.05). The attributes evaluated were sweet taste, bitter taste, acidic taste, astringency, passion fruit flavor, metallic taste, or none of the previous options. The sensory analysis was performed with the participation of ninety adult consumers, divided into three groups: EG = eutrophic, WG = overweight, and OG = obesity group, according to the BMI classification. Between the groups a difference in the perception of the attribute “sweet taste” was observed: The EG demonstrated perception of the stimulus in food samples at lower sucrose concentrations, whereas WG and OG showed a higher rate of sweet taste dominance in the food samples with higher concentration of sucrose. Overweight and obese individuals have a lower sensory perception of sweet taste and require a greater amount of sucrose to producing sensory dominance of the attribute “sweet taste” when compared to eutrophic individuals. Practical Application Overweight and obese individuals may experience taste perception in foods in a different way. This study investigated the dominance of sweet taste perception in a fruit beverage by adults with adequate weight and overweight. The results of the tests support the hypothesis that obese and nonobese individuals differ in the sweet taste perception, which can help to understand which factors are involved in sensory perception and food consumption, in addition to providing subsidies for the nonalcoholic beverage industry to elaborate products with new alternatives for concentration and/or replacement of sucrose.