Effect of gel texture and sucrose spatial distribution on sweetness perception

Layered gels differing in mechanical and breakdown properties (soft, medium and hard gels) and in the distribution of sucrose in the matrix (homogeneous and inhomogeneous distributions) were used to investigate the effects of texture and spatial distribution of sucrose on sweetness perception. Rating tests, 2-Alternative forced choice tests and time-intensity analysis were performed to compare the sweetness of soft, medium and hard gels with homogeneous and inhomogeneous distributions of sucrose. Results showed that all gels with an inhomogeneous distribution of sucrose were perceived sweeter than gels in which sucrose was homogeneously distributed. This indicates that the enhancement of sweetness by an inhomogeneous distribution of sucrose does not depend on the texture of the gel matrix. Furthermore, the time-intensity profiling showed that soft gels, which had low values of fracture strain and fracture stress and broke down in a large number of small fragments upon chewing, had the highest sweetness intensity. The time required to reach the maximum sweetness intensity tended to be shorter in soft gels. These findings suggest that the breakdown behavior of the gel matrix during oral processing affects the perception of sweetness of layered gels.