Consumer sensory evaluation of pear cultivars in the Pacific Northwest, USA

Six pear cultivars, which had shown economic promise and regional adaptability in preliminary research were investigated for a consumer sensory profile, along with local commercial cultivars 'Williams' and Green 'd'Anjou'. Seven hundred and eighty consumers participated in the sensory evaluation, which was divided into three different sets with four cultivars in each set. In set I 'Concorde' rated the highest in taste preference, while 'USDA66170-047' and 'USDA71655-014' rated high in appearance. All of these cultivars rated higher than 'Williams' in purchase intent. In set 2, 'Blake's Pride' (USDA 66131-021) rated highest in all four categories of appearance, taste, taste preference and purchase intent. 'Madeira' rated higher in appearance preference than 'Williams'. Over all the categories, 'Taylor's Gold' and 'Madeira' were rated lower or similar to 'Williams'. In set 3 'Taylor's Gold' rated the highest in taste preference but rated the lowest in appearance preference. Green 'd'Anjou' and 'Williams' rated lower in taste preference than 'Taylor's Gold' or 'Blake's Pride'. Furthermore, 'Williams' rated even lower than Green 'd'Anjou' because the sensory evaluation was conducted on November 22 d and 'Williams' had been stored in air for 3 months. 'Blake's Pride' ranked high in appearance, taste preference and purchase intent. The results indicate that most participants preferred a sweet pear, with flavor. The most important quality factors recognized by consumers were texture, tartness and sourness, and juiciness.