Food Flavour Perception and the Measurement of Tastes and Smells

Flavour perception of food is discussed in this chapter in two main stages of the sensory evaluation process: how flavour evokes our senses and how we measure flavour perception. Flavour stimuli are inherently complex due to the mixed nature of flavour compounds in food. Both the food matrix and individual human factors further modulate this perception. Factors influencing the identification and intensity of flavour stimuli in water- and alcohol-based food matrices are explained, linking subjective and objective sensory assessments with the instrumental measurements. Sensations are understood as raw data transmitted from our sensory receptors to the brain for processing. Flavour perception represents processed data, shaped by integration with memory and emotions related to the flavour and the food medium. When sensations are evoked by flavour stimuli, they are translated and formed in the mind through these cognitive processes. This chapter focuses on measuring flavour primarily through the senses of taste and smell. Traditional instrumental techniques such as HPLC and GC, as well as emerging machine-learning technologies like electronic nose (E-nose) and electronic tongue (E-tongue), which aim to mimic human flavour evaluation, are also presented and discussed.