Barry Callebaut introduces sensory language for chocolate
Barry Callebaut, manufacturer of high-quality cocoa and chocolate products, has introduced a sensory language and tasting ritual to help chocolate professionals and consumers understand and express the richness of chocolate taste.
Barry Callebaut, manufacturer of high-quality cocoa and chocolate products, has introduced a sensory language and tasting ritual to help chocolate professionals and consumers understand and express the richness of chocolate taste. Cocoa and chocolate sensory scientists from Barry Callebaut and the global flavor house Givaudan did extensive research to develop a chocolate sensory language and tasting ritual, inspired by what has already been created for wine, coffee, and craft beer categories.
The chocolate sensory language finds its foundation in the new book “Hidden Persuaders in Cocoa and Chocolate: A Flavor Lexicon for Cocoa and Chocolate Sensory Professionals,” written by Renata Januszewska, global R&D sensory methodologies manager at Barry Callebaut. It is the first science-based publication on how to create a sensory language for the chocolate industry. The book features molecular insights into the compounds related to each flavor you can find in chocolate and contains a science-based categorization of taste, various aromas, as well as trigeminal sensations—such as the coolness of mint or the tingling of sparkling water—and atypical flavors.
Pairing cocoa and chocolate sensory research with consumer understanding, Barry Callebaut developed the Consumer Chocolate Sensory Wheel with 87 descriptors, covering the flavor, texture, and aroma of chocolate. A Chocolate Tasting Ritual requires the five senses—sight, touch, hearing, smell, and taste—and enables chocolate professionals and consumers to discover new dimensions of chocolate experience.
“The book’s ambition is to help switching from an often ‘subconscious/emotional’ to a more ‘conscious/analytical’ approach in the complex world of cocoa and chocolate,” said Januszewska. “Having a shared language will not only enable brands to discuss their chocolate with consumers and describe its uniqueness to them, it will also offer them the means to come up with even better tasting experiences and new taste and food pairing combinations.”