Sensory characteristics of Slovenian honey

The objective of the present study was to assess the sensory quality of Slovenian honey. Three sensory attributes: colour, odour and aroma of 293 honey samples were evaluated by an experienced and trained panel of six assessors. Samples were collected in years 1998 to 2000 and classified to five assorted (acacia, chestnut, fir, lime and spruce) and four unsorted (flower, forest, blend and Metcalfa pruinosa) honeys. The analysis of variance showed that between honey types the differences in colour and odour were statistically significant. The honeys sensory characteristics were generally not influenced by the production year and different seasonal climatic conditions. Sensory evaluation can overcome the limitations of chemical and pollen analyses and serve as an appropriate tool for honey type authentication. Namen prispevka je predstaviti senzorično kakovost slovenskega medu. Tri senzorične lastnosti: barva, vonj in aroma so bile ovrednotene z izkušenim panelom šestih ocenjevalcev. Ocenjenih je bilo 293 sortnih (akacijev, kostanjev, hojev, lipov in smrekov) in nesortnih (cvetlični, gozdni, mešan in škržatov) medov, zbranih v letih 1998 do 2000. Med različnimi vrstami medu so v barvi in vonju ugotovljene statistično značilne razlike. Vpliv leta pridelave in različnih klimatskih razmer na senzorične lastnosti medu ni značilen. S senzorično analizo lahko zadovoljivo odpravimo ali ublažimo pomanjkljivosti kemijske in pelodne analize pri določanju pristnosti in vrste medu.