SEASONAL VARIATIONS IN SENSORY CHARACTERISTICS OF TRADITIONAL WHITE BRINED GOAT CHEESE
Hava MIFTARI, Tatjana KALEVSKA, Tatjana BLAZEVSKA, Ismail FERATI, Daniela NIKOLOVSKA NEDELKOSKA
Abstract
White brine cheese is a widely consumed and recognized product that is produced in almost all regions of North Macedonia. Traditional white brined cheeses in North Macedonia are typically produced with raw untreated milk and no addition of starter cultures. White brined cheeses are rindless, with soft to semi-hard consistency and more often produced from cow's and sheep's milk than from buffalo or goat milk. Specific sensory attributes such as: flavor, aroma, and texture are fundamental to defining the identity, quality, and consumer acceptability of goat cheese. This study presents a comparative sensory evaluation of spring and autumn-produced goat cheese with the aim of identifying seasonal impacts on sensory quality attributes. Cheese samples from both seasons were assessed by a panel according to a structured scoring system for appearance, consistency, odor, and taste. Spring cheese achieved consistently high scores in all parameters, with mean values approaching the maximum for taste (19.85 ± 0.48), odor (29.37 ± 0.90), consistency (33.75 ± 2.19), and appearance (19.37 ± 0.92), resulting in an overall sensory score of 102.35 ± 2.74 out of 105 (97.48%). In contrast, autumn cheese showed greater variability and generally lower sensory performance, particularly in odor (23.15 ± 3.10) and taste (16.85 ± 1.07), with an overall mean score of 90.92 ± 7.87 (86.59%). The results suggest that seasonality significantly influences the sensory characteristics of cheese, with spring conditions yielding a cheese of higher sensory quality.
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