COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS OF THE AROMATIC, SENSORY PROFILE OF THE ELDER FLOWER (Sambucus nigra) COMPOTE, AN INNOVATIVE PRODUCT, WITH BEVERAGES OF
âELDER FLOWER JUICEâ TYPE
MARIA LIDIA D. IANCU * "Lucian Blaga" University of Sibiu, Faculty of Agricultural Sciences,
Food Industry and Environmental Protection, Department of Agricultural Sciences and Food Engineering, 5-7, Ion RaĆŁiu Street, Sibiu, 550012, Romania
*Corresponding author: maria.iancu@ulbsibiu.ro
Wild elder flowers can be used for making a very popular beverage which is called "elder flower juice". Four samples have been analyzed in this study, different by recipe, method of preserving and encapsulating the flavors. Their aromatic profile has been studied and peculiarities of the descriptors have been found following the investigation using the principal component analysis technique, due to the very large number of results (728). Thus, it has been observed that out of the 13 descriptors analyzed by 14 panelists, for the 4 samples, those who give the particularities of the assortment, but also those that are common are: vanilla, freshly cut grass, lemon, rose and wet wood. The close competition was between classic elder flower juice and compote. Thus, for the new product, the fresh elder flower compote, the predominant flavor descriptor was the floral rose one and for the classical fermented elder flower juice was the fruity vanilla and the freshly cut grass. The overall perception of the new product was to place it on the second position (score 2.14) after the traditional elder flower juice (score 2.57).
