[…] there’s more to being a supertaster than just taste buds, because pleasure is happening in the brain. So, something in the brain is different with supertasters and they're getting more pleasure from their favourite foods.
– Linda Bartoshuk
It’s been one whole year since we started sharing a story on a Thursday and if, up until now, it hasn’t been clear, Supertasters is a website and our online home.
We started quietly, building week by week, and when a close friend recently asked, ‘What is Supertasters?’ we thought this might be a good time to clarify.
It’s the same answer we give when asked what our next book project might be. All the time, energy, and professional skill we’d pour into a book, we’re investing in Supertasters. That is, you’re already reading it.
Supertasters.co.za
If you haven’t been to the website that sits behind it all here, go to supertasters.co.za. Take a look around, catch up on stories, and, if there are like-minded friends you think might enjoy, feel free to share.
Why Supertasters?
It’s a word that emerged in the 90s as part of researcher Dr. Linda Bartoshuk’s work: co-incidentally the same decade we both started to explore cooking. But it’s important to know we don’t intend the word ‘super’ in a bigger, better, or comic-book hero sense – it’s about intensity.
Technically supertasters have a greater number of tastebuds on the tongue, which means some tastes are experienced more intensely than average. And that sensitivity can mean being more alert to things, which we take to extend beyond physical sensations to ideas or observations.
Perhaps it’s noticing details no one else seems to, whether it’s a nuance in flavour or a distant but different bird call. In its fullest sense, it might mean using a heightened sensory awareness to take a more thoughtful approach to life, around and beyond the table.
Thank you for being here!
Love,
Nikki & Brandon
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