On Bob Holmes’ ‘Flavor’

Sayani Sarkar
Aug 23, 2017 · 4 min read

Holmes’ mouth-watering study on the science of flavor is both enjoyable and approachable.


Bob Holmes
Nonfiction
320 pages
6.5ʼʼ x 9.6ʼʼ
Hardcover
Also available in audio format
ISBN # 978–0–393–24442–7
First edition
W. W. Norton & Company, Inc.
New York, N.Y.
Available HERE
$26.95


Bob Holmes has been a correspondent with the New Scientist for years and writes articles on culinary science, evolution, environment, and origin of life. In his book, Flavor, he introduces us to the components that create the flavor of what we eat and drink. In the first two chapters, Holmes meticulously describes the definitions of taste and smell. Taste is vital since it tells us the source of nutrients like carbohydrates (sweet), salts or electrolytes (salty), and proteins (umami). Moreover, it also indicates poisonous (bitter) and stale (sour) foods that we avoid. He introduces us to the concept of genetic composition of various tastes and how some animals cannot experience certain tastes because of their specific diets. He writes,

[…] vampire bats, with their blood-only diet, live in a taste world focused so tightly on recognizing the saltiness of blood that they lack the ability to taste sweet, umami, or bitter.

Next, he touches on the importance of smell in the way we savor food. The fact that olfaction is processed by amygdala of the limbic system, the ancient part of the brain that processes memories, tells us why smells are so provocative. Because of this, a great smell can bring back powerful memories associated with it unlike any other sense. Furthermore, Holmes points out the importance of language we use to describe smells. Different cultures have different vocabulary for describing them. A particular wood polish that smells lemony or a cake frosting that smells like lavender is the best we can do to describe smells. The author gives a wonderful example of Jahai, a small tribe of nomadic hunter-gatherers in the mountains of southern Thailand who might say, in their language, that something smells “edible” or “fragrant,” or even “attractive to tigers.” The tribe Suya of Brazil regard odors as bland, strong, or pungent. This enigma of various descriptions of odors arises from the way our brains perceive smell. The fact that our odor receptors can respond to hundreds of different odor molecules is why people like different foods.

Things become really interesting in the following chapter where Holmes talks about the sensation of ‘chili burn,’ which is actually not a taste, but the brain telling you that your tongue is on fire. He describes his own experience of eating raw habanero. The account is funny, and it is later revealed that birds can eat habaneros and remain absolutely calm because they cannot feel the burn. In addition to this, the curious cases of the bite of a carbonated drink, the tingle of sichuan peppercorns, and drinking tea as a palate cleanser, makes this a fascinating chapter.

The author describes how chefs and gastronomy experts use not only taste but the sense of touch, sight, smell, and sound to enhance flavor experiences in their restaurants. Essentially, oysters taste good if you can hear the ocean in the background. There are some experiments done with wine tasters and their changing perception of a particular wine on a daily basis and why cheap wines can taste better in expensive glasses. Holmes’ own experiences and his interviews with various research groups are a common element of all the chapters. The author accounts his visit to the flavor industries and their efforts in imparting artificial flavors to our foods. He summarizes the crux of the flavor biology,

A common misconception is that the foods contain the flavors [. …] Foods do contain the flavor molecules, but the flavors of those molecules are actually created by our brains.

So do we think what we eat and not vice versa? Something to ponder upon. The book ends with snippets about kitchen chemistry, the human food habits and its impact on health issues like obesity, and the quest of researchers to enhance flavors back into crops like tomatoes and strawberries.

The author takes us on a mouth-watering journey through this book, making it a delightful read. It is a useful compendium in the study of flavor biology and food science, making it both enjoyable and approachable to the readers.

The Coil

Literature to change your lightbulb.

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Sayani Sarkar

Written by

An artist trapped in a scientist’s body. Kolkata, India.

The Coil

The Coil

Literature to change your lightbulb.

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