K. A. Hein (1), H. Heymann (1), N. Gonzalez (2), K. Adhikari (3)*

(1) University of California – Davis, USA,

(2) California State Polytechnic University – Pomona, USA,

(3) Kansas State University – Manhattan, USA

 koushik@remove-this.ksu.edu; Fax: 785-532-3132; Phone: 785-532-5509

Standards of identity of Hispanic cheeses, which forms a very important part of the Hispanic diet, are lacking. With no standards of identity currently in existence for Hispanic cheeses, manufacturers have no flavor profile to compare for ensuring consistency in manufactured products. Characterization of a subset of Hispanic cheeses was performed using traditional descriptive analysis practices.

Four varieties of Hispanic cheese, Queso Fresco, Panela, Queso Quesadilla and Asadero were each selected from two manufacturers (both in United States of America) for descriptive analysis. One manufacturer was located in a largely Hispanic populated region while the second one was in an area with less Hispanic populace. A trained panel of eleven judges evaluated all eight samples in quadruplicate using a consensus-developed lexicon of nineteen descriptors.

The samples were described based on the visual appearance (texture and color), textural mouthfeel and milky aroma.  Canonical Variance Analysis (CVA) indicated that the two Queso Fresco samples were not different (P ? 0.05) from one another. Between the two manufacturers, the remaining three pairs of cheeses were significantly different (P < 0.05) from each other, indicating very different flavor profiles. Although the four Hispanic cheeses from the two manufacturers were of the same varieties, the overall appearance, mouthfeel and flavor were distinctly different in three of the four pairs.