Tastelweb© (Food + Wine)

TASTELWEB© OVERVIEW

Tastelweb© was created by Mr. Bertrand Thuillier, CEO ABT informatique and retired professor of food engineering and sensory evaluation (Polytech Lille, AgroSup Dijon et EBI (Paris)). In 2015, ABT introduced a new and innovative sensory test, called Pivot® Profile test.

Sirocco Food + Wine Consulting Inc. uses Tastelweb© for sensory data analysis and reporting (See tests below).

Did you know that Bureau Veritas chose Tastelweb© to evaluate and rank Bordeaux wines from Saint-Émilion. Read the story here.

For more information on the value of sensory testing in the food and beverage industry, read our sensory blog.

CONTACT FOR FREE DEMO

Featured Sensory Tests

Triangle Tests

The triangle test is a discriminative method which enables the comparison of two samples to determine if an overall sensory difference exists between two products. This test does not require expert assessors but it is used to screen potential panelists to assess their sensory acuity. This test is ubiquitous in the food industry to determine the effects of slight changes in product formulation or process on the sensory profile of a product. Read our sensory blog on fair-trade chocolate.

Food Profiling/QDA®

Quantitative Descriptive Analysis (QDA®) is a robust sensory profiling methodology. QDA® was developed by Tragon Corporation in collaboration with UC Davis. When implementing sensory profiling and QDA® methodology, expert panelists or judges perform multiple product evaluations by rating the intensity of sensory descriptors using linear scales. The methodology is most effective when the panelists enjoy a good consensus regarding the sensory descriptors under study. Statistical analysis makes it possible to determine panelist performance and to quantify sensory differences amongst samples. QDA® results are often graphically represented such as on a spider graph or PCA plot. Read our sensory blog on plant-based yogurts.

Pivot® Profile Test

Pivot profiling is a rapid data collection methodology which requires that panelists assess and describe the sensory profile of a sample by comparing it to a control known as “the pivot”. This novel technique provides an alternative to QDA®, suitable to consumer studies. It was first introduced by Mr. Bertrand Thuillier’s team in a French study on Champagne. The method has also been tested on chocolate ice cream, honey and beer. The strength of the methodology is that it allows panelists to use their own language to describe differences in intensity between two products. Read our vertical tasting of wine using the Pivot method.

Development of the Pivot© profile method

Application of Pivot© profile method in the cosmetics industry

White paper: The Pivot© Profile Test or the intuitive sensory profiling method

Quali® Profile

The qualitative profile is used to conduct quality control tests of food, beverages including alcoholic beverages. A small panel of tasters (QC-QA staff, R&D staff, lab analysts, winemakers or brewers) assess the sensory quality of production batches to ensure that critical specifications are achieved (no defects, adequate sweetness or residual sugar, texture, acidity).

Advantages

A very useful approach for supplier approvals.
A common test that may require only a few well-trained tasters (3, 4 to 5 judges).
Selection of important descriptors for a complete product description.
A useful tool for consultants (sommeliers, sensory scientists, winemakers or brewers, specialists working with olive oil, coffee, tea, brewed beverages) who provide routine quality control services. Read our sensory blog on the use of aroma wheels and the Quali®
Profile.

Consumer Tests

These sensory tests are conducted to gather consumer feedback on product preference and acceptance, capturing insights into likes and dislikes. Panels may consist of trained evaluators or targeted demographic groups, such as children or older adults. The questionnaires are flexible in design and include a combination of open- and closed-ended questions, along with standardized evaluation tools such as the 9-point hedonic scale and Check-All-That-Apply (CATA) methods. The tests are portable, and results are available immediately upon completion, making them especially useful for tastings, product trials, and similar events.

BUY NOW

background image

Panel Training and
Performance Module

Tastelweb© allows the sensory panel coordinator to organise panel training sessions. Samples varying in intensity are prepared and assessed by the panel. The assessment is treated as for a profiling study, but a review of panelists’ scores is performed instead. It is possible to pre-populate sensory scores in order to determine differences between panelist scores and expected results. Overall panel performance results can be studied as well as individual panelist’s results.

Tastelweb’s trusted customers, for over 25 years…

Questions? Ready to get started? Drop us a line!

Contact Sirocco

What Clients Are Saying

We would like to express our sincere appreciation for the outstanding support provided during our SQF preparation and implementation process. Your guidance was practical, clear, and aligned with regulatory expectations, which made a significant difference in our development of the processes.

You were consistently professional, very knowledgeable, and exceptionally responsive. Questions were addressed quickly and thoroughly, often accompanied by helpful examples, forms, and templates that we could immediately apply within our system. This level of support streamlined our efforts and ensured we stayed on track.

Although we have not yet completed our certification, we are confident that, with the foundation you helped us establish, we will successfully achieve certification without difficulty.

We are very pleased with your expertise and commitment, and we highly recommend your services to any organization seeking reliable and effective SQF consulting support.

Sigal Pashinski

VP of Compliance and Regulatory Affairs

I just wanted to take a moment to thank you Karine Lawrence for the excellent PCQI V2 course you taught. I truly appreciated how detailed and thorough you were in your explanations. You took the time to ensure I understood the concepts, and I learned a great deal from you.

Your patience and the way you clarified each point made the training very effective. I feel much more confident now, and I know I will be able to apply the knowledge and skills I gained in my career moving forward.

I’m very grateful for the time and effort you spent with me. Thank you again for such a valuable learning experience.

Prakshi P.

Quality Assurance Services, Primo Brands.

It was a pleasure working with Karine throughout the process of getting our first SQF certification completed on a deadline. Having no in-house experience in the process of setting up a proper SQF level system and being audited, the resources and expertise that Karine was able to offer us was irreplaceable. The SQF templates were instrumental in getting our internal paperwork organized in time and the onsite consulting ensured that our facility passed with flying colours. She gave us much-needed confidence during a very stressful process.

Keith Seidel

Director of Operations/co-founder

Distillers Way

Karine was the best part of this [SQF] course. It is clear that she is an authority in many processes based on the examples provided. I like that Karine went into detail and spoke of her own experiences. I really enjoyed how she kept everyone engaged.

participant feedback obtained from a SQF course taught for Eurofins

We had the privilege of working with Karine at Sirocco Food + Wine Consulting for a gap assessment of our facility to SQF standards. Karine demonstrated exceptional expertise, provided a very thorough and insightful analysis, and really went above and beyond to take the time to clearly explain each requirement and provide suggestions. She developed a comprehensive, actionable report despite a tight timeline, and would highly recommend her services to any organization.

MG, Food Scientist

I have had the pleasure of working with Karine for over a year now. She helped our company pass our first SQF audit Ed. 8.1 with a score of 94. For our recertification audit, which was on SQF Ed. 9.0, Karine visited our site and performed a gap assessment. She was able to identify a lot of areas for improvement and with her help our company passed the audit and achieved a score of 96. Karine is really knowledgeable on SQF. She is easy to work with and extremely helpful.

Issa Hashim

QA Specialist/SQF Practitioner

Blue Ocean Teaz & Herbalz Inc.

We successfully passed our initial HACCP certification audit, without a single finding! While this seemed quite surprising, I then realized that this was due to the thorough gap assessment provided by Sean Xia at Sirocco Consulting, along with additional documentation support.

Sean inspected our facility and dug through all of our systems and records in such detail as to be able to expose all of our issues. We were then provided with our initial HACCP plan and a set of GMP documentation that we were able to edit and integrate with our existing documentation. But these documents were not just provided to us, they were each individually reviewed in a handover that provided further insights. And Sean also made himself available for future questions – such amazing support!

As we proceeded to work through implementation of the new GMP’s and to address all items in the gap assessment, I felt quite confident – albeit a bit trepidatious – about the pending audit. However, on the audit date, things went so much more smoothly than I ever could have imagined.

Thank you, Sirocco!

Sean

My company needed to create a more robust Preventative Control Plan than what we had, and I am so thankful to have found Sirocco Food + Wine Consulting. Their templates were just what I needed, and Karine and Sean were readily available to answer my questions and provide guidance when necessary. Karine and her team are highly competent, knowledgeable, friendly, and prompt to respond with help. I can’t recommend them enough!

Craig Stuart

Oceanside Brands

Karine is such a wonderful teacher. As a student for the PCQI hybrid course I learned a lot from the virtual course but was left with a lot of questions. I was looking forward to the instructor-led course to get some more practice and answers to my questions. Karine was clear and thorough in her explanations. Her consulting business experience gave her a plethora of examples to draw from. I was impressed by her ability to address my questions and give me resources to continue my study. She is very well versed in the regulations required and is up to date on any changes or new publications that may influence your business. She was very accommodating to my needs. I highly recommend taking a class from Karine. She is an expert in her field. I left the class feeling confident in my ability to act as a PCQI and make a positive impact on my company.

Annalisa Broadhead

Graduate Student

Utah State University

I have been very pleased and satisfied with the SQF Bundle edition 9 developed by Karine Lawrence from Sirocco Food + Wine Consulting.
All procedures (templates) are professionally and beautifully written, saved us a tremendous amount of time, and enabled us to achieve our goal of gaining an excellent score in the audit.
Karine is very knowledgeable, and it has been a pleasure working with her. I highly recommend the SQF Bundle and her consulting services.

Shahrzad Shahvand

Quality Systems Manager

California Packaging Centers

MORE TESTIMONIALS

Tastelweb© (Food + Wine)

TASTELWEB© OVERVIEW

Featured Sensory Tests

Triangle Tests

Food Profiling/QDA®

Pivot® Profile Test

Quali® Profile

Advantages

Consumer Tests

Panel Training and
Performance Module

Tastelweb’s trusted customers, for over 25 years…

Questions? Ready to get started? Drop us a line!

What Clients Are Saying

What We Do

Learn More

Tastelweb© (Food + Wine)

TASTELWEB© OVERVIEW

Featured Sensory Tests

Triangle Tests

Food Profiling/QDA®

Pivot® Profile Test

Quali® Profile

Advantages

Consumer Tests

Panel Training and Performance Module

Tastelweb’s trusted customers, for over 25 years…

Questions? Ready to get started? Drop us a line!

What Clients Are Saying

What We Do

Learn More

Get Insider Tips!

Panel Training and
Performance Module