DISTINGUISHING FOUR TRADITIONAL VINEGARS BY SENSORY ANALYSIS AND COLORIMETRIC SENSORS

ABSTRACT The aim of this research was to use sensory analysis and colorimetric sensors to evaluate four Chinese traditional vinegars. Firstly, sensory analysis was performed by descriptive tests. An evaluation card for vinegar sensory analysis was set up. Four traditional vinegar groups can be clearly identified by sensory panelists from principal component analysis results. Secondly, 23 chemoresponsive dyes and seven pH dyes were selected, and a 5 × 6 colorimetric sensor array was used to measure the four traditional vinegars. With cluster analysis, all samples were assembled “Zhenjiang Vinegar,”“Shanxi Vinegar,”“Sichuan Vinegar” and “Zhejiang Vinegar” when the similarity was 12. Thirdly, the correlation between the sensory analysis and the colorimetric sensor analysis was taken into account. These works showed that sensory analysis and colorimetric sensor analysis were both good in identifying different vinegars although they did not correlate with each other. PRACTICAL APPLICATIONS An evaluation card was set up for sensory evaluation. Thirteen descriptive attributes belong to three distinct classes and their scores were first reported in this article. The evaluation card could be used for quality control of vinegar by sensory analysis in Vinegar Company in China. The colorimetric sensor array system which was set up in this article could also be used in the Chinese vinegar quality control. This article also gives an approach for studying the traditional food in China.