152 MODERN METHODS OF TESTING MILK 



Terms describing flavors. — The following terms 

 are selected from the great variety of names that are 

 applied to various flavors found in butter : ( i ) Per- 

 fect, (2) quick, (3) clean, (4) light, (5) buttermilk, 

 (6) rancid, (7) tallowy, (8) cowy, (9) fishy, (10) 

 tainted, (11) stable, (12) weedy, (13) cheesy. 



(i) Perfect flavor applies to butter which possesses 

 the characteristic aroma and taste of high-grade but- 

 ter in a well-marked degree. It is difficult to de- 

 scribe this flavor adequately, but it is commonly char- 

 acterized as nutty, clean, pleasantly aromatic, delicate 

 and sweet. Perhaps the best description of it is to 

 liken it to the flavor of clean, well-ripened cream. It 

 should be entirely free from rancidity or any unusual 

 flavor. 



(2) Quick flavor is so delicate and volatile that it 

 disappears quickly ; "high" is also applied to the same 

 condition. 



(3) Clean flavor is free from every trace of unpleas- 

 ant aroma or taste. 



(4) Light or -Rat flavor in butter indicates absence of 

 marked flavor, due to lack of cream-ripening, to ex- 

 cessive washing of granules and to other conditions. 



(5) Buttermilk flavor is somewhat sour in taste and 

 like buttermilk in aroma. It is due to the presence of 

 an excessive amount of buttermilk in the butter. 



(6) Rancid flavor is that of butyric acid, the pres- 

 ence of which is due to the use of over-aged cream or 

 milk or to age of butter, in which butyric acid fer- 

 mentation has occurred. When the flavor is strong, 

 it produces an unpleasant, strangling or choking sen- 

 sation in a sensitive throat. The odor is very pene- 

 trating and lasting. 



