Journal of Texture Studies 36 (2005) 303–323. All Rights Reserved. © Copyright 2005, Blackwell Publishing 303 CONTRIBUTION OF GLYCEROL, ETHANOL AND SUGAR TO THE PERCEPTION OF VISCOSITY AND DENSITY ELICITED BY MODEL WHITE WINES CANAN NURGEL 1 and GARY PICKERING 1,2,3,4 1 Cool Climate Oenology and Viticulture Institute Brock University 500 Glendridge Ave., St. Catharines Ontario, L2S 3A1 Canada 2 Department of Biological Sciences Brock University Ontario, Canada 3 Department of Psychology Brock University Ontario, Canada Received for Publication December 2, 2004 Accepted for Publication April 12, 2005 ABSTRACT The contribution of glycerol, ethanol and sugar to the perception of viscosity and density of model wine (MW) solutions was examined. In study 1, the effects of individual components on perceived viscosity (PV) and per- ceived density (PD) were studied using 5, 20 or 50 g/L glycerol; 3, 7 or 15% v/v ethanol and 0, 80, 150 or 250 g/L sugar concentrations. In study 2, model ice wine mixtures of 8, 10 or 12% ethanol and 150, 250 or 300 g/L sugar were assessed for PV and PD. The physical viscosity and density of the MWs were also measured in both studies. Across the range of concentrations investi- gated, sugar influences the perception of viscosity and density the most, ethanol has a moderate effect and the contribution of glycerol is nominal. In model ice wine solutions, PV and PD increased with sugar concentration, but were minimally affected by changes in ethanol concentration. The PV elicited by the model ice wine solutions was well described by a linear model using physical viscosity as the independent variable (r: 0.907). This information may be useful for predicting the sensory properties of the ice wine for quality control purposes. Blackwell Science, LtdOxford, UKJBRInternational Journal of Evidence-Based Healthcare1479-697X2005 The Joanna Briggs Institute 2005363303323Original ArticlePERCEPTION OF VISCOSITY AND DENSITYC. NURGEL and G. PICKER- ING 4 Corresponding author. TEL/FAX: 1-905-688-55-50-4715; EMAIL: gary.pickering@brocku.ca