I worded that poorly. I wasn’t referring to the flavor of the ethanol, I was referring to the flavor of the alcoholic beverage. And by flavor I was really referring to the sensory experience of consuming the beverage, including taste, smell and touch sensations, not specifically the way it binds to receptors in your taste buds. So I don’t think that’s a big problem, more like a nitpick. I encourage you to be more charitable in your future readings of my comments, to say “what here might be true, or pointing to a true effect” and then engaging with that, rather than searching for things to be dismissive about.
From the inside, it genuinely feels like I enjoy the sensation of drinking whiskey. I am the sort of person that will look for tasting notes in spirits. But I don’t drink non psychoactive drinks that way, and no one else does either, which you would expect they would if the flavor’s subtle complexity on its own were enough to explain the fact that it tastes good. If everyone were going around drinking something that tasted just like 30 year-old scotch, but without alcohol, and they all talked about how interesting, subtle and complex its flavor profile it, I’m pretty sure I would have tried it once and said, “This tastes gross” and never tried it again. So I don’t think a purely social explanation is sufficient.
I was referring to the flavor of the alcoholic beverage
I don’t understand what do you mean. There is no the alcoholic beverage. The flavor of a Bud Light is entirely different from the flavor of an Imperial Stout which is entirely different from the flavor of a Cabernet red wine which is entirely different from the flavor of tequila, etc. etc.
I’m not nitpicking, I’m disagreeing with you :-)
But I don’t drink non psychoactive drinks that way, and no one else does either
However a lot of people eat food this way. Cheese, for example, has no psychoactive qualities and comes in a very large variety of flavors including ones which are unusual and offputting to some people.
I suspect 9eB1 meant that a drink should have “psychoactive properties” to gather a culture of “tasting notes” around its perceived “flavour properties” and somehow although people drink for the psychoactive properties, they believe they drink for the flavour properties.
I agree with the variations in cheese flavours that people talk about; and also bread for that matter. Also fish, smoked foods, vinegars, oils, cake...
Also worth adding is things like “coffee flavour” would not be appealing if people didn’t also like the flavour. Some people below have mentioned liking coffee icecream but not coffee.
I suspect 9eB1 meant that a drink should have “psychoactive properties” to gather a culture of “tasting notes” around its perceived “flavour properties” and somehow although people drink for the psychoactive properties, they believe they drink for the flavour properties.
Yes, I think he means something like that and I disagree with that. I think alcoholic drinks actually have a very diverse and interesting set of flavors that are worth exploring even without the psychoactive effect of alcohol. De gustibus, of course...
I worded that poorly. I wasn’t referring to the flavor of the ethanol, I was referring to the flavor of the alcoholic beverage. And by flavor I was really referring to the sensory experience of consuming the beverage, including taste, smell and touch sensations, not specifically the way it binds to receptors in your taste buds. So I don’t think that’s a big problem, more like a nitpick. I encourage you to be more charitable in your future readings of my comments, to say “what here might be true, or pointing to a true effect” and then engaging with that, rather than searching for things to be dismissive about.
From the inside, it genuinely feels like I enjoy the sensation of drinking whiskey. I am the sort of person that will look for tasting notes in spirits. But I don’t drink non psychoactive drinks that way, and no one else does either, which you would expect they would if the flavor’s subtle complexity on its own were enough to explain the fact that it tastes good. If everyone were going around drinking something that tasted just like 30 year-old scotch, but without alcohol, and they all talked about how interesting, subtle and complex its flavor profile it, I’m pretty sure I would have tried it once and said, “This tastes gross” and never tried it again. So I don’t think a purely social explanation is sufficient.
I don’t understand what do you mean. There is no the alcoholic beverage. The flavor of a Bud Light is entirely different from the flavor of an Imperial Stout which is entirely different from the flavor of a Cabernet red wine which is entirely different from the flavor of tequila, etc. etc.
I’m not nitpicking, I’m disagreeing with you :-)
However a lot of people eat food this way. Cheese, for example, has no psychoactive qualities and comes in a very large variety of flavors including ones which are unusual and offputting to some people.
I suspect 9eB1 meant that a drink should have “psychoactive properties” to gather a culture of “tasting notes” around its perceived “flavour properties” and somehow although people drink for the psychoactive properties, they believe they drink for the flavour properties.
I agree with the variations in cheese flavours that people talk about; and also bread for that matter. Also fish, smoked foods, vinegars, oils, cake...
Also worth adding is things like “coffee flavour” would not be appealing if people didn’t also like the flavour. Some people below have mentioned liking coffee icecream but not coffee.
Yes, I think he means something like that and I disagree with that. I think alcoholic drinks actually have a very diverse and interesting set of flavors that are worth exploring even without the psychoactive effect of alcohol. De gustibus, of course...