We saw last Thursday the first of the four flavors (plus one) that make up the flavor family: sour, sweet, salty, bitter and umami. Today is the time for dessert.
It is the most beloved flavor and possesses the longest period of “latency,” i.e., of persistence, of duration, on the language. The saying “
dulcis in fundo
” is quite illustrative because in the end it lasts longer than the others and remains to dominate the flavor scene. The sweet is reassuring, pleases almost everyone, and goes to dampen and harmonize the other flavors. The use of sugar in so many foods and drinks amply demonstrates this.
It is derived, as everyone knows, from sucrose, glucose, fructose, lactose, but also from natural products such as honey. It is contained in various concentrations in fruits, but also in beets, sugarcane, indeed, and tomatoes. It is the basis of the confectionery around the world, and starches are also “simple sugars” and produce sweet tendencies in foods containing them.
The dessert then can turn into something else. Underlying all the alcoholic beverages, of the ethyl alcohol itself, there is a sugar, a sweet element, that ferments. And, if you look closely, there is always a sweet tendency in all these drinks.
Try an experiment. Take two glasses of water and in one add a drop of alcohol, either brandy or schnapps, it’s pretty much the same thing. Then taste them. You will feel a very slight sweetness in the one with added alcohol. Because sweetness comes from sugars, but not only that. And it should be savored carefully, especially when it is not as obvious as it is in a custard. Very good, though.
Here is last week’s article on Aspro: Four flavors plus one. The sour – DoctorWine
