Which sugar is considered the sweetest?

Fructose is recognized as the sweetest sugar among commonly encountered sugars in brewing and food science. This natural sugar is found in many fruits and honey, contributing to their sweetness. Fructose has a higher sweetness intensity compared to sucrose, glucose, and maltotriose, with studies showing that it can be about 1.2 to 1.8 times sweeter than sucrose, depending on concentration.

This property is particularly important in various applications, including brewing and food formulation, where sweetness levels play a critical role in flavor balancing. Understanding the relative sweetness of sugars allows brewers and chefs to manipulate recipes effectively to achieve desired flavor profiles without increasing the overall sugar content excessively, which can impact fermentation and mouthfeel.

While other sugars like sucrose and glucose are also sweet, they do not reach the same intensity of sweetness as fructose, making fructose the go-to choice when determining the sweetest option in this context.