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Mouthfeel is a product’s physical and chemical interaction in the mouth. It is a concept used in many areas related to the testing and evaluating of foodstuffs, such as wine-tasting and rheology
Rheology

Rheology is the study of the flow of matter: mainly liquids but also soft solids or solids under conditions in which they flow rather than deform elastically....
. It is evaluated from initial perception on the palate
Palate

The palate is the roof of the mouth in humans and vertebrate animals. It separates the oral cavity from the nasal cavity. The palate is divided into two parts, the anterior bony hard palate, and the posterior fleshy soft palate or velum....
, to first bite, through mastication
Mastication

Mastication or chewing is the process by which food is crushed and ground by teeth. It is the first step of digestion and it increases the surface area of foods to allow more efficient break down by enzymes....
 to swallowing
Swallowing

"Gulp" redirects here. For other uses, see Gulp .Swallowing, known scientifically as deglutition, is the process in the human or animal body that makes something pass from the mouth, to the pharynx, into the esophagus, with the shutting of the epiglottis....
 and aftertaste
Aftertaste

Aftertaste is the persistence of a sensation of flavor. Both food and drink may have an aftertaste. Alcoholic beverages such as wine, beer and whiskey are noted for having particularly strong aftertastes....
. In wine-tasting, for example, mouthfeel is usually used with a modifier (big, sweet, tannic, chewy, etc.) to the general sensation of the wine in the mouth.






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Mouthfeel is a product’s physical and chemical interaction in the mouth. It is a concept used in many areas related to the testing and evaluating of foodstuffs, such as wine-tasting and rheology
Rheology

Rheology is the study of the flow of matter: mainly liquids but also soft solids or solids under conditions in which they flow rather than deform elastically....
. It is evaluated from initial perception on the palate
Palate

The palate is the roof of the mouth in humans and vertebrate animals. It separates the oral cavity from the nasal cavity. The palate is divided into two parts, the anterior bony hard palate, and the posterior fleshy soft palate or velum....
, to first bite, through mastication
Mastication

Mastication or chewing is the process by which food is crushed and ground by teeth. It is the first step of digestion and it increases the surface area of foods to allow more efficient break down by enzymes....
 to swallowing
Swallowing

"Gulp" redirects here. For other uses, see Gulp .Swallowing, known scientifically as deglutition, is the process in the human or animal body that makes something pass from the mouth, to the pharynx, into the esophagus, with the shutting of the epiglottis....
 and aftertaste
Aftertaste

Aftertaste is the persistence of a sensation of flavor. Both food and drink may have an aftertaste. Alcoholic beverages such as wine, beer and whiskey are noted for having particularly strong aftertastes....
. In wine-tasting, for example, mouthfeel is usually used with a modifier (big, sweet, tannic, chewy, etc.) to the general sensation of the wine in the mouth. Some people, however, still use the traditional term, "texture".

Mouthfeel is often related to a product's water activity
Water activity

Water activity is a dimensionless quantity used to represent the energy status of the water in a system. It is defined as the vapor pressure of water above a sample divided by that of pure water at the same temperature; therefore, pure distilled water has a water activity of exactly one....
, hard or crisp products having lower water activities and soft products having intermediate to high water activities.

  • Cohesiveness: Degree to which the sample deforms before rupturing when biting with molar
    Molar (tooth)

    Molars are the rearmost and most complicated kind of tooth in most mammals. In many mammals they grind food; hence the Latin name mola, "millstone"....
    s.
  • Denseness: Compactness of cross section of the sample after biting completely through with the molars.
  • Dryness: Degree to which the sample feels dry
    Dry

    Dry may refer to:* Lack of water* Lack of alcohol * Dryness, the lack of sugar in a drink* Dry , an album by PJ Harvey* Dry , a memoir by Augusten Burroughs...
     in the mouth.
  • Fracturability: Force
    Force

    In physics, a force is that which can cause an object with mass to change its velocity. Force has both Euclidean_vector#Length of a vector and Direction , making it a Vector quantity....
     with which the sample crumbles, cracks or shatters. Fracturability encompasses crumbliness, crispiness, crunchiness and brittle
    Brittle

    A material is brittle if it is liable to fracture when subjected to stress . That is, it has little tendency to deform before fracture. This fracture absorbs relatively little energy, even in materials of high Strength of materials, and usually makes a snapping sound....
    ness.
  • Graininess: Degree to which a sample contains small grain
    GRAIN

    GRAIN is an international non-governmental organization based in Barcelona, Spain, which works toward sustainable agriculture. It was formed upon the realization that the genetic diversity of the world's food crops are being drastically eliminated....
    y particles.
  • Gumminess: Energy
    Energy

    In physics, energy is a scalar physical quantity that describes the amount of Work_ that can be performed by a force. Energy is an attribute of objects and systems that is subject to a conservation law....
     required to disintegrate a semi-solid food to a state ready for swallowing.
  • Hardness: Force required to deform the product to given distance, i.e., force to compress between molars, bite through with incisors, compress between tongue and palate.
  • Heaviness: Weight
    Weight

    In the physical sciences, weight is a measurement of the gravitational force acting on an object. Near the surface of the Earth, the Earth's gravity is approximately constant; this means that an object's weight is roughly proportional to its mass....
     of product perceived when first placed on tongue.
  • Moisture absorption: Amount of saliva
    Saliva

    Saliva is the watery and usually frothy substance produced in the mouths of humans and most other animals. Saliva is produced in and secreted from the salivary glands....
     absorbed by product.
  • Moisture release: Amount of wetness/juiciness released from sample.
  • Mouthcoating: Type and degree of coating in the mouth after mastication (for example, fat
    Fat

    Fats consist of a wide group of compounds that are generally soluble in organic solvents and largely insoluble in water. Chemistry, fats are generally ester of glycerol and fatty acids....
    /oil
    Oil

    An oil is a chemical substance that is in a viscosity liquid state at room temperature or slightly warmer, and is both hydrophobic and lipophilic ....
    ).
  • Roughness: Degree of abrasive
    Abrasive

    An abrasive is a material, often a mineral, that is used to shape or finish a workpiece through rubbing which leads to part of the workpiece being worn away....
    ness of product's surface perceived by the tongue.
  • Slipperiness: Degree to which the product slides over the tongue.
  • Smoothness: Absence of any particles, lumps, bumps, etc., in the product.
  • Uniformity: Degree to which the sample is even throughout.
  • Uniformity of Chew: Degree to which the chewing characteristics of the product are even throughout mastication.
  • Uniformity of bite: Evenness of force through bite.
  • Viscosity
    Viscosity

    Viscosity is a measure of the Drag of a fluid which is being deformed by either shear stress or extensional stress. In everyday terms , viscosity is "thickness"....
    : Force required to draw a liquid from a spoon over the tongue.
  • Wetness: Amount of moisture perceived on product's surface.


See also

  • Wine tasting
    Wine tasting

    Wine tasting is the sensory examination and evaluation of wine. While the practice of wine tasting is as ancient as its production, a more formalized methodology has slowly become established from the 14th century onwards....
  • Food
    Food

    Food is any substance, usually composed of carbohydrates, fats, proteins and water, that can be Eating or Drinking by an animal or human for nutrition or pleasure....
  • Texture
    Texture

    Texture refers to the properties held and sensations caused by the external surface of objects received through the sense of somatosensory system....