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Question of the Week / QotW - 11.09.25 - Why do some foods complement each other so well?
« on: 23/09/2011 10:14:43 »
Food and science, can it get any better?
I think that when we use the word "taste" we often really refer to "flavours". As already mentioned, we only really distinguish between 5 basic tastes, detectable by the tongue and mouth. Flavours, on the other hand, are related to the volatile compounds released by food and are detected by the sense of smell. Flavours are are many, complex and to some extend interpreted subjectively. The author of The Flavour Thesaurus, Niki Segnit, divides her book into 16 categories (earthy, sulphurous, fresh fruits, citrussy, etc.)for example.
So when certain types of food go well together it's often because they share certain flavour compounds (measured in Odour Activity Values, I believe). For example, according to one webpage, banana goes well with parsley because they share (Z)-3-hexen-1-yl and linalool (source: blog.khymos.org). That said, it's not a guarantee that everyone will like any combination which share certain compounds because personal taste (or should I say 'flavour'?) is often down to eating habits, palate training and culture.
Finally, returning to the original question, it should not be forgotten that the fat and proteins in cheese also, to some extent, coat the taste buds which again accentuate or soften certain qualities of the wine.
I think that when we use the word "taste" we often really refer to "flavours". As already mentioned, we only really distinguish between 5 basic tastes, detectable by the tongue and mouth. Flavours, on the other hand, are related to the volatile compounds released by food and are detected by the sense of smell. Flavours are are many, complex and to some extend interpreted subjectively. The author of The Flavour Thesaurus, Niki Segnit, divides her book into 16 categories (earthy, sulphurous, fresh fruits, citrussy, etc.)for example.
So when certain types of food go well together it's often because they share certain flavour compounds (measured in Odour Activity Values, I believe). For example, according to one webpage, banana goes well with parsley because they share (Z)-3-hexen-1-yl and linalool (source: blog.khymos.org). That said, it's not a guarantee that everyone will like any combination which share certain compounds because personal taste (or should I say 'flavour'?) is often down to eating habits, palate training and culture.
Finally, returning to the original question, it should not be forgotten that the fat and proteins in cheese also, to some extent, coat the taste buds which again accentuate or soften certain qualities of the wine.