Orthonasal aroma characteristics of Spanish red wines from different price categories and their relationship to expert quality judgements

Abstract

Background and Aims: Research aimed to define the olfactory sensory spaces of Spanish red wines from different price segments and to determine relationships between sensory descriptors and quality as evaluated by experts. Methods and Results: A trained panel using a frequency of citation method assessed the orthonasal sensory characteristics of 96 Spanish wines belonging to three price segments (premium; high standard; low standard). Eleven robust sensory terms were built by combining similar terms using statistical criteria. A panel of experts consistently assessed quality. Negative aroma profiles, some of them very skewed, were identified in the different sets with ‘animal’, ‘undergrowth’, ‘vegetal’, ‘dried fruit’ or ‘evolved/oxidized’ notes. While skewed aroma profiles were not necessary for achieving low quality, the role of some terms was highly dependent on the category. ‘Dried fruit’ was positive in premium wines and negative in the other categories, in which its role was played by ‘berry’. The low standard wines had to be segmented into wooded and unwooded samples to find clear relationships with quality. Satisfactory models for quality could be built in all segments. Conclusions: Orthonasal aroma can explain wine quality. The sensory pair ‘woody/animal’ was confirmed as the most relevant and influential for wine quality. The role of the other terms depended on the category. Oxidation‐related attributes are particularly detrimental to younger wines. Significance of the Study: The results provide a reliable and complete sensory database. They identified aroma profiles related to quality, provided an insight into the hierarchies of terms and provided information that will assist in the identification of the aroma chemicals potentially involved.

Levels of higher alcohols inducing aroma changes and modulating experts' preferences in wine model solutions

“…Interestingly, this suggested that samples containing 299 mg/L of HA already displayed a slight spirit‐like aroma conferred by these compounds; however, this concentration was not enough to generate a significant rejection of samples. This could support the idea that experts´ preferences would be more related to the aroma harmony reached by the mixture of different sensory attributes than by the presence of a predominant aroma note in wine (Sáenz‐Navajas et al ).…”

Effect of grape maturity on wine sensory and chemical features: The case of Moristel wines

“…Considering that young red quality is positively linked to fruity aromas and negatively to oxidation and dried fruit nuances (Sáenz-Navajas, Gonzalez-Hernandez, Campo, Fernández-Zurbano, & Ferreira, 2012), results suggest that the optimal point of harvest would be BLA_3 for Block A and BLB_4 for Block B. This result differs from the commercial system employed as it suggested earlier points of maturity: BLA_2 and BLB_2 as optimal points.…”

Wine tasting based on emotional responses: An expedite approach to distinguish between warm and cool climate dry red wine styles

“…However, current knowledge on sensory science has shown that experts cannot detect more than three or four different fragrances in complex odor mixtures (Jinks & Laing, 2001;Livermore & Laing, 1998). There may be disagreement even among professionals in assessing complex wines, where descriptors like "undergrowth" are regarded as indicators of high quality by some (Picard, Tempere, Revel, & Marchand, 2015), and as a fault by others (Sáenz-Navajas, González-Hernández, Campo, & Fernández-Zurbano, & Ferreira, V., 2012). Additionally, language has a disruptive effect on the sensory ability.…”