Cost - Effective Flavor Evaluations

One of the most common questions we get asked daily is, “how do we evaluate flavors or extracts?” Understandably, most retailers, or soon to be retailers feel they need to make a full batch, freeze and taste. While this process presents the end product for evaluation it is inherently wasteful of your time and resources, two things that are precious to your bottom line. Additionally, the majority of prospective business owners do not have a commercial location or equipment to run the trial.

So, what are some of the options?

1. Half & Half Plus Sugar Method 2. Actual Mix Method 3. Scaled Down Batch Method

To begin, let’s cover converting US fluid ounces to milliliters as this will be utilized for scaling down the flavor or extract portion of the exercise. This is important as the majority of food products in the American market are measured in Gallons, Fluid Ounces, Weight Ounces and Pounds, while the rest of the World and scientific community utilizes the Metric system, Liters, Milliliters and Grams. Please see below:

Half & Half Method

For customers that do not have equipment or mix, you can test flavor profiles in a sugar and dairy mixture. This method is substantially less expensive than using an actual frozen dessert mix and can be used for extensive or large scale flavor testing. Start by mixing the below:

880 grams of Half & Half 120 grams of granulated sugar

Use a scientific scale and 4 cup Pyrex measuring cup and stir vigorously until all the sugar is dissolved. Then measure off 4 Cups (32 Fluid Ounces) into a separate container. This mixture mimics the dairy fat and sucrose levels in a common frozen dessert mix.

Now, look at your flavor/extract usage recommendations. Let’s assume that the extract calls for 2 fluid ounces for every 2.5 gallons of mix. To calculate the flavor usage see below:

128 Fluid Ounces per Gallon 320 Fluid Ounces in 2.5 Gallons 322 Fluid Ounces Total 2 fluid Ounces/322 fluid ounces = .62%

Now back to the 32 ounces (4 Cups) of Half & Half and sugar in the separate container.

32 x 29.5735 milliliters = 946.35 milliliters

To determine the amount of flavor to add to the 16 ounces, see below:

946.35 x .62% = 5.86 milliliters, round up to 5.9 milliliters

Measure in milliliters with a glass pipette, such as the ones below. These can be sourced easily in 5, 10 or 15 milliliter sizes.

After adding the appropriate amount of flavor to the 32 fluid ounce sample, shake vigorously and place in the freezer for 30-45 minutes. Then remove the container, shake vigorously and pour into sample sizes for evaluation. The semi frozen product will mimic the coldness that we experience when eating frozen desserts. Keep in mind that cold temperatures depress our ability to taste, similar to the difference between hot versus cold coffee.

Simplified flavor evaluations will typically include three main categories that can be rated on a scale of 0-5. 0 being not preferred and 5 being a home run. Categories are:

Color Flavor Sweetness

Complete the evaluations independently versus in a group to eliminate bias. Evaluators across all demographics are highly recommended and we typically include a large group of young tasters as they represent a large portion of the consuming public.

Actual Mix Method

Use the Half & Half calculations with your actual in house mix of choice. Scale down your normal batch size for testing purposes to minimize waste. For example, instead of flavoring a 2.5 gallon bag of the mix for a soft serve freezer, run 1.25 gallons, which will charge and run several servings through most soft serve equipment. This method is typically used as the last and final test before committing the flavor to your menu board.

Have fun testing your foundational flavor profiles, while saving time and money in the process!

Andrew Jones

President Lloyd’s of Pennsylvania, Inc.