Abstract: The sensory descriptors of 48 Chinese brewing soy sauce samples were generated by a trained panel. A Chinese brewing soy sauce flavor wheel was created based on 55 selected aroma, flavor, taste and mouthfeel attributes for the first time. On this basis, the most frequently occurring descriptors were selected to compile a brewing soy sauce sensory lexicon of 20 flavor and taste attributes along with a definition and reference standard for each term. A selection of 20 brewing soy sauce samples with different grades and origins was also evaluated using quantitative descriptive analysis. It was found that the characteristic flavor attributes of soy sauce were bean paste, salty, umami, Chinese herbal, cooked soybean and so on. Significant differences in sensory properties of soy sauce within different grades or origins were found by the ANOVA, principal component analysis and discriminant analysis. This research could provide a method reference for the study of sensory quality of Chinese brewing soy sauce.

Key words: Chinese brewing soy sauce, sensory evaluation, flavor wheel, quantitative descriptive analysis