Development of biochemical and sensory characteristics of goat cheese. Interspecies study by exchange of the fatty fraction and the skimmed fraction of cow's and goat's milk.

Soft and semi-hard cheeses were manufactured with goat's and cow's milk, ei ther with the original milk, or after exchange of the skimmed and the fatty fractions. The physico-chemical and sensory characteristics of the four ty pes of cheeses obtained by both technologies were analyzed. Within the semi -hard cheeses group, more proteolytic activity was observed in goat's skimm ed milk cheeses. In both soft and semi-hard cheeses, cow's milk produced mo re lipolyzed cheeses. The goaty flavour of semi-hard cheeses was strongly r elated to the presence of goat's fatty fraction, whereas in the soft cheese s, the goaty flavour was influenced by both milk fractions. The perception of this flavour in the cheeses was related to the presence of C6:0, C8:0, C 9:0, C10:0, 4MeC8:0 and 4EtC8:0 fatty acids. Milky and buttery odours were related to cow's milk fat, whereas pungent, rancid, acid and bitter attribu tes differed between soft and semi-hard cheeses. The texture characteristic s were only influenced by the skimmed milk fraction in semi-hard cheeses, w hereas they were also related to the fatty fraction in soft cheeses. (C) In ra/EIsevier, Paris.