Program Overview

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Introduction to WSC416 Sensory Science

This subject introduces students to the key principles behind the physiology and characteristics of the senses, with a particular focus on wine sensory assessment. Through the application and development of various sensory testing skills and procedures, students will learn to describe and identify sensations produced by major wine components, main wine varieties, styles, Australian regions, and common faults.

Availability

• Session 1 (30): Online, Wagga Wagga Campus
• Session 2 (60): Online, Wagga Wagga Campus
• The subject commences in session 1 and concludes in session 2. Students must enrol in both sessions 1 and 2.

Subject Information

Grading System

• HD/FL

Duration

• Two sessions

School

• School of Agricultural and Wine Sciences

Enrolment Restrictions

• This subject is restricted to students enrolled in the Master of Viticulture and Oenology (Articulated Set)

Assumed Knowledge

• Basic statistical knowledge

Subject Relationships

• WSC216 Paired Subject

Incompatible Subjects

• WSC210, WSC216, WSC510

Learning Outcomes

Upon successful completion of this subject, students should:

• Be able to examine the physiology of the perception of taste, smell, texture, chemesthesis, and its impact on sample perception characteristics.
• Be able to critically analyse sensory testing methods and interpret sensory data.
• Be able to integrate sensory principles to inform wine and grape juice evaluation in relation to important sensory characteristics and their balance, wine type, grape variety, wine style, and wine processing.
• Be able to evaluate wine faults and explain their causes.

Syllabus

This subject will cover the following topics:

• The senses: contrasts of capabilities and physiology; the roles of flavour, odour, taste, texture, and appearance.
• The senses of taste and smell: the sensations, receptors, and their characteristics and interaction, nasal and retronasal pathways, odorant-structure relationships, adaptation, hunger, and ageing.
• Texture: texture types, texture terms, and perceptions.
• Chemesthesis: receptor types, sensation types, sensitisation, and adaptation.
• Appearance: principles of colour vision; attributes of appearance.
• Sensory assessment: analytic vs hedonic assessment, the role of training, principles of sensory response behaviour, the role of statistics, control of the sensory testing environment.
• Sensory testing: difference tests, measurement of sensory thresholds, scaling, and ranking.
• Application of sensory principles to wine assessment, the basic tastes, taste interactions, influence of ethanol content, comparison of major wine types, bitterness and astringency, sensory thresholds, influence of wine pH and ageing.
• Role of odour: interaction of taste and smell, influence of grape variety, introduction to regional effects.
• Introduction to wine judging, the Australian wine show system, judging wines.

Residential School

This subject contains a 4-day Compulsory Residential School. The Residential School will allow students to conduct a series of tutored tastings facilitating discussion and providing practical examples that help emphasise key subject outcomes.

Special Resources

Students are required to attend the compulsory residential school, which may involve travel and accommodation expenses and a time commitment.