Scientists have discovered a sixth taste, although they can’t actually agree on what it tastes like.
Researchers in the United States say the sixth taste is calcium, a sort-of bitter, sort-of sour flavour that they have identified as having its own taste receptors in the tongue.
Researchers in Japan call it kokumi and say it doesn’t actually have a taste in itself: It enhances taste by triggering calcium receptors in the tongue.
Both teams agree on calcium. They disagree on how and why it works.
The upshot is the Western mouth is turning out to be more sophisticated than science realized. Which is good news for the future of nutrition.
Kokumi translates roughly as heartiness. It explains, for example, why meat that’s slow-roasted for 12 hours tastes better than meat cooked for one, or why aged Gouda tastes better than the new stuff.
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