When Taste Matters, Glass Delivers

KEY TAKEAWAYS

• Taste depends on more than the recipe: how a product is protected matters too.
• Inert and odourless, glass interacts very little with the food and drinks it contains.
• Its surface provides a highly effective barrier against gases and vapours.
• Its colour can also help protect products that are sensitive to light.

Great taste starts with protection

Temperature, recipe, freshness, the moment itself… Many factors shape the way we experience taste. Packaging plays a part too: it protects a product during storage and helps preserve its quality, aromas and flavours until the moment we enjoy it.

That is where some of glass’s most distinctive properties come into their own.

Source: Marsh & Bugusu, Food Packaging—Roles, Materials, and Environmental Issues, Journal of Food Science, 2007 – Read the scientific paper

Light matters too

Colour with a purpose

Clear glass lets you see the product. But for foods and drinks that are sensitive to light, colour can add another layer of protection. Darker glass reduces the transmission of certain wavelengths that may affect the product inside.

Source: Marsh & Bugusu, 2007 – Read the study

Beer is a good example

Light can trigger reactions that alter the aroma of beer. Research published in 2016 found that amber glass reduced light transmission across the wavelengths studied, helping protect light-sensitive beers.

Source: Hucker et al., Journal of the Institute of Brewing, 2016 – Read the study

Olive oil

Coloured glass can help shield light-sensitive oils and support the preservation of their aromatic qualities.

Source: Study by the University of Eastern Piedmont, presented by Assovetro.
Read the olive oil study

Jams

Glass can withstand the high temperatures used when filling many foods, including acidic products such as jams.

Source: Marsh & Bugusu, Journal of Food Science, 2007.
Read the scientific paper

Wine  

For wine too, the bottle and its closure work together to control oxygen exchange during storage.

Source: Lopes et al., Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry, 2007.
Read the study on closures

Taste, without interference

A good recipe deserves to stay true to itself. That is one of glass’s key strengths: thanks to its inertness and barrier properties, it helps protect a product’s sensory qualities throughout storage.

Depending on the product, glass colour and the closure system can add further protection, particularly against light or oxygen.

Glass does not create the flavour. It helps preserve the flavour the producer intended. And that may be one of its most valuable qualities.

Sources: Marsh & Bugusu, 2007 – Read the scientific paper / Dieter Schrenk, 2014 – Read the Schrenk report