Flavor: The Science of Our Most Neglected Sense

We enjoy morning coffee or an exquisite dinner, knowing basically nothing about the complex interaction between the taste sensations of our receptors, smell, touch, vision, and even our expectations—factors that combine to create what we call “taste.” Even though we encounter taste several times a day, we know very little about it, and therefore we simply fail to notice the tiniest details of what we eat or drink. As a result, the entire rich world of taste is reduced for us to a kind of “background” sensation.

We can enrich our lives through the world of taste, but to do that we need to learn a bit more: how we perceive taste, how it is created, and how to maximize it.

This book is a kind of guide to the world of taste—from neurobiology to the science of food production—that will help you understand much better what “taste” is and how to use this knowledge to enhance your taste experience.