The creation of the new Coffee Taster’s Flavor Wheel (SCA) includes the work of researchers at three North American universities and a lot of testing. Their aim was to provide the coffee professional with a sensory tool based on scientific data.

This course will introduce the student to the stages of development of the Flavor Wheel as well as the Sensory Lexicon. It is important to understand that both should be used as descriptive tools to guide coffee evaluation. Moreover, the Flavor Wheel and the Sensory Lexicon should be used differently in different contexts of communication, such as expert versus consumer language. In addition, we will discuss the Coffee Emotion Lexicon and how consumers' emotional responses are effective in understanding consumer niches and preferences.

Content

1) The mental lexicon, the sensory lexicon, and the emotional lexicon: The study of the experience of products.

2) Sensory analysis and descriptive tools: What is a flavor wheel?

3) The creation of the most recent Coffee Taster’s Flavor Wheel (SCA).

4) Coffee Sensory Lexicon (WCR): Quantification of coffee aromas and flavors.

5) The Emotion Lexicon of coffee: Consumption niches based on consumer pleasure.

6) How to use the Coffee Taster’s Flavor Wheel: The language of coffee (expert versus consumer)