Chemical, physical and sensory analysis for evaluating quality of apricot cultivars.

Eight apricot cultivars (Orangered, Laycot, Sungiant, San Castrese, Tonda di Costigliole, Valeria Gottero, Bergeron and Tardif de Bordaneille), grown in Costigliole di Saluzzo (CN, Piemonte), the main area of culture of the species in North-western Italy, were evaluated for fruit quality using chemical and sensory analyses. Fruit weight, flesh firmness, total soluble solid, pH and titratable acidity were determined at ripeness on three replicates of 10 apricots; the amounts of main sugars, polyalcohols and organic acids were measured on the same samples using a DANI 86.10 capillary gaschromatograph. Sensory evaluation was performed by a trained panel of 20 tasters. A total of 11 descriptors were used to evaluate: appearance, odour, texture, taste and flavour. Samples were scored for each descriptor using a continuous scale ranging from 0 to 15, where 0 = absent and 15 = very strong, except for colour. An “overall quality” estimate was requested and rated in the same way. Results of chemical analysis showed differences in acid and sugar contents among varieties. While sucrose was always the prevalent sugar, the proportion between the two main acids, citrate and malate, largely varied depending on the cultivar. The sensory evaluation indicated that the overall quality is positively related with flavour, sweetness and juiciness. In general, the most appreciated apricots had a well balanced ratio sugars/acids, although the different proportion between the main acids can influence the fruit acceptance