1. CoSSOL Project
Module 3
Third meeting in France
Périgueux
11th to 15th May 2011

2. Organoleptic Analysis: Practical
Exercise
Objectives
 The test is based on two organoleptic
exercises:
1) one on strawberries;
2) another on Duck «foie gras» (fat liver )
o The use of mathematical probability laws will enable us to
keep only one hypothesis.

3. Methodology
 The organoleptic tests involved 30 partners of the
COSSOL project from 11 European countries.
 This number of participants is enough to assess that 14
identical answers suffice to decide whether the test is
successful or not with a small 5% error margin.

4. Experiments
 Test 1 : Tasting of strawberries
o The triangular test with the binominal law enables us to
know if the public can distinguish two different varieties of
strawberries.
 Test 2 : Tasting of «foie gras»
o The Wilcoxon test method enables us to hiérarchise the
taste of two regional products from the same category:
«whole half-cooked foie gras» on the one hand, «portion
of duck Foie Gras with chunks of liver» on the other.

5. Results
 Test 1: The triangular test enabled the public to
actually distinguish the two different varieties of
strawberries.
 Test 2: The Wilconxon test method enabled the public
to hiérarchise the two different foie gras products
according to their taste.
o The «portion of duck Foie Gras with chunks of liver»
was clearly preferred to the «whole half-cooked foie
gras »

6. Carrying out the tests with a
class
 Step 1 : The teacher provides tyhe class with the
basic elements that need to be known.
 Step 2 : The organoleptic analysis enables us to:
o put the notions evoked previously into practice.
o Ease their assimilation by the students;
o Understand tyhe meaning and the utility of these
elements;
o Make a link between theory and practice.