Fallibility of Gustatory Perception

supertaster

person who is more sensitive to certain tastes than most others, they experience taste with far greater intensity than the ‘average’ person, especially bitter tastes

cause of supertasters

inheritance of high quanitities of papillae

supertasters are most sensitive to

bitterness

miraculin

protein found in fleshy part of a mircale berry

how miraculin works

after eating it, the miraculin attaches itself to your sweet recpetors, upon interaction with acids from sour foods, changed shape to activate the sweet recptors that are usually onlt set off by sugars

flavour

perceptual experience produced by a combination of taste and other sensations, smell is crucial to this sensation

taste

the sensation of flavour perceived in the mouth and throat on conatct with a substance

how is flavour distinguished from taste

flavour is a more substantial perceptual experienced based on taste and other sensations such as visual and auditory stimuli when eating and drinking

example of colour intensity in perceptual set

a brighter or richer coloured food item can seem to taste different to a blander coloured one, even when there is no change in the chemicals that make up the flavour

texture

property of food or beverage that is felt in the mouth and contributes to flavour along with taste, vision and other sensations

example of texture in the perceptual set

if someone were to eat a ‘chewy’ steak they would not be pleased, if they had a ‘chewy’ cookie or mueseli bar they would be satisfied and would think that cookie or mueseli bar was delicious