"Requeijão cremoso" is a type of smooth and spreadable cheese, manufactured with milk coagulated by natural acidification and addition of milk cream or butter oil. The sensory profile of four commercial brands of requeijão cremoso was developed through Quantitative Descriptive Analysis (QDA). Eleven descriptive terms, their definitions and reference samples were generated by a selected and trainned panel. The statistical analysis included Analysis of Variance (ANOVA), Tukey's Test for means, and Principal Component Analysis (PCA). Brand A showed low consistency and a smooth appearance. The main attribute of brand B was a strong salty taste. Both products C and D showed very similar sensory profiles, presenting higher consistency than brand A. Laboratory consumer tests were also carried out, using a nine point hedonic scale. All products showed good acceptance, but subjects preferred the samples with higher consistency.
requeijão cremoso; quality control; sensory analysis; descriptive quantitative analysis; acceptance
