The independence and integration of olfaction and taste

Publisher Website
Google Scholar
Abstract
To study the influences of smell on the scaling of taste, and vice versa, an unobtrusive device was developed which permits the independent varying of the olfactory and gustatory components of a flavor compound. With instant coffee and the method of magnitude estimation, the slopes of the olfactory, taste, and flavor curves produced by this device were similar to those produced by more traditional delivery systems. To study the interaction of taste on smell and vice versa, subjects scaled olfactory stimuli against different taste backgrounds and taste stimuli against different odorant backgrounds. Taste backgrounds did not significantly alter the scaling of olfaction. Similarly, olfactory backgrounds did not significantly alter the scaling of taste. Finally, subjects scaled overall intensity (flavor) when presented with all combinations of four concentrations of odorants and tastants. Smell and taste were shown to contribute independently to the estimation of overall intensity.