Sensory profile of flavor and odor characteristics in Roncal cheese made from raw ewe's milk

Roncal cheese is made from raw ovine milk and is regulated by an Appellation of Origin. This cheese variety is quite popular with consumers because of its special properties, which are unlike those of other ewe's-milk cheeses. To date there have been no studies aimed at characterizing the flavor and odor attributes of Roncal cheese. To remedy this situation, sensory analysis has been performed using Roncal cheese samples collected from artisanal and industrial cheese-making establishments. The cheeses were made at three different times of year (winter, spring, and summer) and were ripened for four or eight months. Sensory descriptors were generated, and after discussion suitable descriptors for describing and discriminating among Roncal cheese samples were selected by multivariate analysis. In all, 19 descriptors were employed, namely: odor: cream, meat broth, olive, toffee, liquid caramel, toasted, acetic acid, sweat, acidified milk, ammonia, leather, stable straw, wool, and odor intensity. flavor: characteristic flavor, acetic acid, sweat, butyric acid, and flavor intensity.