Semisolid starch based dairy desserts, mainly vanilla flavoured, are of wide consumption in Spain under the name ‘natillas’. Noticeable differences in rheological behaviour have been found in commercial samples (1, 2) and in model systems with different compositions (3). However, few studies (4, 5) have dealt with this products by a sensory point of view, generally using trained panels. The objective of this work was to determine if Spanish consumers were able to detect differences among eight commercial ‘natillas’ and to obtain data on consumers perception of the sensory characteristics of this products.MEC Proyecto AGL 2003-0052