Flavour profiling of ‘Marion’ and thornless blackberries by instrumental and sensory analysis

The flavour of thornless blackberries grown in Pacific Northwest including ‘Thornless Evergreen’, ‘Black Diamond’, ‘Black Pearl’, ‘Nightfall’, ORUS 1843-3, ‘Waldo’, NZ 9351-4, and ‘Chester Thornless’ as well as ‘Marion’ was profiled by sensory evaluation and instrumental analysis. Sensory results showed that ‘Marion’ and ‘Waldo’ had the lowest sweetness score, while NZ 9351-4 and ‘Thornless Evergreen’ had the highest sweetness scores. ‘Nightfall’ and ORUS 1843-3 had significantly lower sourness, while ‘Black Diamond’ and ‘Waldo’ had significantly higher sourness. The taste data only partly matched with the objective °Brix and titratable acidity data. Descriptive aroma analysis indicated that ‘Black Diamond’, ‘Black Pearl’, ORUS 1843-3, and NZ 9351-4 were similar to ‘Marion’ in terms of fresh fruit, strawberry, floral, and raspberry aroma, while ‘Thornless Evergreen’, ‘Chester Thornless’, ‘Nightfall’, and ‘Waldo’ had more vegetal, woody, mouldy, and cooked fruit character. Instrumental analysis and calculated odour activity values (OAVs) indicated that furaneol, linalool, β-ionone, 2-heptanol, and carvone could be the major aroma contributing compounds in these blackberries. Generalised Procrusters analysis (GPA) indicated the chemical analysis matched with descriptive sensory analysis. Odour-active compounds of furaneol, linalool, geraniol, ethyl hexanaote, trans-2-hexenol, and β-ionone in ‘Marion’, ‘Black Diamond’, ‘Black Pearl’, ORUS 1843-3, and NZ 9351-4 could account for their similarity in fresh fruity, floral, strawberry, and raspberry aroma; while 1-octen-3-ol, myrtenol, eugenol, and α-terpineol in ‘Thornless Evergreen’, ‘Chester Thornless’, ‘Nightfall’, and ‘Waldo’ could account for their vegetal, woody, mouldy, and cooked fruit flavour.