Flavor tripping experiment results

[mattbell]

Last weekend I had about 10 people over to try out the flavor tripping tablets that remap your taste buds so that sour things taste sweet, alcohol tastes milder, and bitter things taste weird. 

We tried at least 40 different foods and drinks.  I had the guests rate each edible item based on how much of a change there was from before to after taking the tablet.  It was really well organized but still lots of fun.



Here are the results:

The tablets worked on almost everyone.  There were a couple of guests who had unusual palates (one could not taste bitter things).  The effect lasted between 10 and 30 minutes. 

Things that were awesome to at least one person:

Picked hot peppers
Dill pickles
Martini olives
Kalamata olives
Cornichons
Salt + vinegar potato chips
Kimchi
Corn salsa
Capers

Dark chocolate (87%)

Balsamic Vinegar
Rice Vinegar
Orange Champagne vinegar

Bell peppers (orange)
Kiwis
Red grapes
Plums
Limes
Lemons
Green onions
Purple cabbage
Raw rhubarb
Strawberries
Tomatoes

Goat cheese
Plain yogurt


Campari Bitters
Mexican Coke
Cheap Tequila
Cheap Whiskey
Irish Cream
Aftershock (cheap cinnamon liqueur)
Dry sake
The Beast (a 34 proof beer)
Reed's Ginger beer
Hard apple cider
IPA
Bud light (which I normally find undrinkable)
Typical Red Wine

Xylitol (a natural sugar substitute) -- the bad aftertaste was GONE!

Echinacea extract.... which everyone agreed was AWESOME.

Things that were not so interesting:

Dry tomato, elderberry liqueur, gin, broccoli, carrots, cucumber, cilantro, watermelon, basil, radishes, bananas, sour cream.

--------------------
I'm doing another flavor tripping event this Saturday night.  Please let me know if you'd like to come but have not already done so via Evite.

If you're coming this week, here's what I'd love you to bring:
- As many different kinds of vinegar as possible.
- Unusual sour fruit.
- Coffee. 
Please comment if you can bring any of these items.

Comments

[patrissimo.livejournal.com]

S & I are probably coming.

[ekesobriquet.livejournal.com]

I am probably coming and will try to bring pickled watermelon that has a bit of chili in the pickling ingredients.

[nasu-dengaku.livejournal.com]

That sounds totally bizarre. I'd love to try it.

[jhogan.livejournal.com]

You found a use for The Beast!!

[zellandyne.livejournal.com]

I will be there; sans Navarre. I'm not sure if we RSVPd or not... he has another business trip to Mexico.

I think I have some Apple Cider vinegar at home. I'll check and bring it if I do.

Things to bring...

[girlpurple.livejournal.com]

Red Raspberry Vanilla Basalmic Vinegar
Basalmic Vinegar glaze/reduction sauce
Homemade Limoncello (alchohol)
Limoncello Cream (alcohol)
Pomegranate mead

Am also wondering about chocolate covered espresso beans...

Re: Things to bring...

[nasu-dengaku.livejournal.com]

that would be awesome

[ferrouswheel.livejournal.com]

I'm intrigued by the what the tablets are...

and perhaps to attend as well?

[nasu-dengaku.livejournal.com]

This might help:

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/05/28/dining/28flavor.html

And of course you're welcome to come.

[foxgrrl]

I have a lemon tree in my back yard, with very very fresh lemons on it. They taste different from the ones in the store.
I also have a bunch of pickled things I can bring too. And Kombucha.

[nasu-dengaku.livejournal.com]

Go for it.

[karenbynight.livejournal.com]

I'd like to come, and bring my partner princeofwands.

[danea.livejournal.com]

Hi! I enjoyed chatting with you Saturday night, do you mind if I friend you?

[nasu-dengaku.livejournal.com]

go for it.

[radven.livejournal.com]

"Echinacea extract.... which everyone agreed was AWESOME."

Not everyone!! I thought it had a horrible painful burning taste both before and during the trip, with little if any change.

*ugh*

[nasu-dengaku.livejournal.com]

Therefore you must not be human.

Your alien masters will be most displeased once they learn how poor you were at staying undercover.

[spoonless.livejournal.com]

I'm coming... I don't recall getting an e-vite, for some reason.

[spoonless.livejournal.com]

Mexican Coke

was the taste of this altered a lot more than regular coke? or was there no regular coke on hand to try?

[nasu-dengaku.livejournal.com]

No, we had no regular coke on hand.

[geheimnisnacht.livejournal.com]

Hey, I'd like to come up too; I'll carpool with Jeff. Some things I could bring:

blue cheese
sauerkraut
anchovies?

[nasu-dengaku.livejournal.com]

That sounds interesting.

[eccentrific.livejournal.com]

How about tea? I have some very dark/bitter black tea that I was thinking would be fun to try if I can remember to bring it.

[nasu-dengaku.livejournal.com]

We tried some tea last time and got mixed results -- it seems that the change to very bitter substances is hard to predict.

However, I'm very interested in having people just bring interesting foods and drinks. I have a tea kettle but I don't have a metal mesh tea egg thingy.

[acydrayn.livejournal.com]

After some nudging from Dave I might be coming out to this from the Love Parade. I've wanted to try it since I read the articles about it a while back. People have already mentioned the first things that sprang to my mind so i'll try to figure something out to bring.

Also, I'll be bringing my camera set so we can get some good pictures hopefully. I'm really glad that I picked photography as a degree because homework is actually awesome.

[danaoshee.livejournal.com]

Me and Almus should be there - do you have a coffee maker? We have coffee we could bring.

[(Anonymous)]

sorry... I don't have a coffee maker.

[danaoshee.livejournal.com]

Ok, I'll keep thinking about what to bring then.:)