About a month ago, I was listing to my NPR food podcast while working out, and I heard an essay about being a supertaster. Supertasters are people who experience taste with greater intensity than others. The term originated in the 1990s when psychologist Linda Bartoshuk noticed that some people in laboratory tests seemed to have an elevated taste response to certain foods. Thus she coined the term and the supertaster was born.

Being a chef, my sense of taste (and of course smell) is very important to me. But I started to wonder if I could possibly be a supertaster. I thought back to numerous occasions where I went out to eat and wondered what was in certain dishes. While others around me would call out sesame oil, applesauce, or brown butter, I was usually at a loss. All I knew was that the dish tasted great but ask me to create the dish at home and I’d probably fail.

When I returned home all sweaty and hot, I immediately opened a browser. Typing in Supertaster led me to a site where you can order tests that will determine if you too are a supertaster. Realizing our group dinner party was just around the corner, I ordered 10 test kits and waited in breathless anticipation.

A week later, nine of friends gathered together in our monthly supper club. Since we had a few moments to kill before dinner was ready, I pulled out the tests. Everyone looked at me with trepidation and suspicion as I passed around the little baggies containing two innocuous strips of white paper. Instead of telling people what they were in for, I just asked them to trust me.

We opened the baggies and each put a small strip on our tongue. The rules tell us to wait 10 seconds and then report what we tasted. As one person across from me immediately recoiled at the bitter taste in her mouth, I noticed a very strong, very bitter sensation coming from my own tongue. A few others around the table scrunched their face in disgust but for the most part, people just looked around the table with no expression.

As the 10 seconds expired, we reported our findings. Three of us immediately noticed the disgusting bitter taste in our mouths (supertasters). One person reported a slight bitter taste but not enough to recoil (a taster). The remaining six people tasted nothing but a piece of paper (non-tasters).

Evidently women, Asians and Africans are more likely to be supertasters. And it’s estimated that 25% of people of European descent are supertasters. Research shows that being a supertaster is actually genetic.

Supertasters are very susceptible to bitter flavors especially those found in alcohol, Brussels sprouts, cabbage, kale, green tea, spinach, soy products, and carbonated beverages. And of course they need to be careful when chili peppers (the burn is more intense), tonic water (quinine is bitter), and olives (too salty).

So if you too think you’re a supertaster or you’re just curious, go online an order your own test for $4.95.

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