Nammex Publishes Sensory Panel Report to Aid Mushroom Beverage Manufacturing

Nammex, a supplier of certified organic functional mushrooms extracts, commissioned a sensory panel report to help product formulators manufacture functional mushroom beverages. The sensory performance of a product is a vital benchmark in functional food, beverage, and nutraceutical markets, the company noted.

The report, ” Elevating Sensory Expectations: A Technical Panel Review of Nammex Organic Mushroom Extracts,” is available to interested formulators. It provides insights for formulators, R&D teams, and brand managers looking to elevate product quality with Nammex’s ingredients.

“Beverage companies are seeing the huge growth in functional drinks designed around the benefits of functional mushrooms, so the purpose of this report is to help them speed their time to market with successful products,” said Skye Chilton, CEO of Nammex.

The report shares the findings of a professional sensory analysis of 16 mushroom samples from Nammex, evaluated for flavor, aroma, bitterness, and overall appeal. The panel focused on culinary and formulation-relevant attributes. To develop the report, an expert panel was convened by the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC), and the BC Beverage Technology Access Center (BCBTAC), a Canadian sensory science hub specializing in food and beverage innovation.

The panel was comprised of chefs, a sommelier, and a fermentation specialist, and evaluated samples across dimensions including:

• Appearance, aroma, bitterness, astringency, acidity, and flavor
• Overall hedonic score on a 1-10 scale
• Qualitative notes for culinary and formulation use

Products were standardized by weight and steeping protocol: 5 grams in 250 mL of freshly boiled water, steeped for 10 minutes, and filtered through 1.8 μm glass-fiber filters. Extract ratios included 1:1, 8:1, and dual-extraction formats. Over two days, the tasting team dove into aroma, mouthfeel, bitterness, and more, scoring each extract’s unique character on a 1-10 scale.

Maitake and cordyceps 8:1 extracts stood out for their flavor density, making them suitable for savory-forward products.

There was variable bitterness across species, where lion’s mane and reishi had wide sensory swings based on extraction method, which is essential for brands that formulate for palatability or bioactivity.

Lower-ratio (1:1) extracts generally yielded clearer filtrates, while higher-ratio products brought more complexity but occasional haze, which is relevant in ready-to-drink formulations.