Comparison of methods of analysis of time-intensity data: application to Scotch malt whisky

Time-intensity (TI) data typically consist of assessments at 1 s intervals of a set of samples by a panel of assessors. Some means of summarising the data must be found, and the data must be represented in a way which allows comparisons between samples. Parameters such as maximum intensity, time to maximum, and total duration are typically used and samples compared by analysis of variance. Thirteen assessors scored sweet taste intensity for 60 s, for 20 whisky samples drawn from 5 types of cask after 4 maturation times. Scaling and then averaging of the transformed data provided the best summary, and ante-dependence modelling showed that the intensity value at each time-point of the curve was dependent on the previous five time-points. Small effects of cask type and maturation time were found on sweet taste in whisky samples.