While coffee bodies in academia and industry are often looked at in terms of viscosity, new research suggests that small chemical molecules and the receptors of our mouths may be more involved in receiving body consciousness rather than the mere physical viscosity of the mixed water. In a presentation at the American Chemical Society (ACS) fall meeting today, the researchers say the findings could help inform coffee roasters and producers alike. specialty coffees when they searched for results specific to the body or mouthfeel of coffee.

“We’ve known that coffee itself can affect texture perception, and it’s traditionally been attributed to sugars and lipids,” said OSU sensory scientist Christopher Simons, one of the investigators. project co-leader informed in advance of the presentation. “But our team found that this feeling can be fueled by small molecules, which are unique.”

For the study, the team at OSU engaged numerous workshops of professional coffee tasters, including certified Q raters, to evaluate the attributes of four different coffees. A panel of eight tasters agreed on a set of references for the sensations contained in each cup.

Four tactile sub-attributes – powdery, mouth-watering, astringency, and thickness – are used to distinguish coffees, while sub-attributes are studied more closely in individual coffee samples through liquid chromatography. The results, the researchers said, show precisely which compounds are responsible for specific body attributes.

For example, the research found that melanoidin compounds formed by the Maillard reaction (first crack) in coffee roasting can be associated with astringency. Meanwhile, the compounds 3- and 4-caffeoylquinic acid were found to correspond with the mouthfeel.

The researchers said the work has led to an increased interest in how receptors in the mouth may detect or react to the small molecules that affect mouthfeel, as well as in how coffee production, post-harvest processing, and roasting might affect these body-changing molecules.

“Body” is one of the primary categories in the Specialty Coffee Association cupping form, which is widely accepted and adopted throughout the industry for professional coffee evaluation and quality control.

“From our background reading, we found definitions of the coffee body to be very vague, and at times, contradictory,” said Brianne Linne, a graduate researcher at OSU who helped lead the investigation, so we thought that this would be an intriguing topic for us to study.”

Source: Coffee T&I

Compilation: 43 Factory Coffee Roaster

Link:https://dailycoffeenews.com/2021/08/24/new-research-finds-specific-compounds-that-affect-coffee-mouthfeel/