Electronic sensing of the taste of beer and other foodstuffs

A recently developed electronic sensing system with global selectivity is composed of several kinds of lipid/polymer membranes for transforming information of taste substances into an electric signal. The sensor output shows different patterns for chemical substances which have different taste qualities such as saltiness and sourness. Amino acids can be classified into several groups according to their own tastes with sensor outputs. The taste of foodstuffs such as beer, coffee, mineral water and vegetables can be discussed quantitatively using the taste sensor, which provides the objective scale for the human sensory expression.