Are You Ready to Explore the Phenomenon of Gastronomic Synesthesia?

Dear Readers,

I would like to begin my article with a few questions.

The first question: “Can you taste a sound or hear a color?”
Yes, this question might sound absurd to you. I can almost hear you saying, “Professor, what is the point of asking us such irrational questions?”

Here comes another question:
“Do you know the colors of the number 5 and the letter M?”

Answers to questions

The answer to the two questions I asked lies within the concept of “synesthesia.” Synesthesia is a phenomenon that causes sensory crossovers, such as tasting colors or perceiving the color of sounds. In fact, the likelihood that we have experienced this sensory crossover at some point in our lives is quite high. You are probably nodding in agreement. Some of us describe this experience by saying, “I think the wires in my brain are crossed…” because while there is only one reason for a particular sense to be activated, something occurs that stimulates two or more senses simultaneously. This is what we call the phenomenon of synesthesia. Let me clarify right away: synesthesia is not a disease or a health issue. However, it is a neurological condition involving the unusual blending or crossover of the senses.

What is the phenomenon of synesthesia?

Synesthesia, which means "perceiving together", refers to a multisensory experience where one sensory stimulus triggers an unrelated sensory perception. When we consider our five senses—sight, touch, taste, smell, and hearing—we arrive at twenty possible combinations. However, when we delve deeper into the phenomenon of synesthesia, we realize that it involves much more complex processes. For instance, a shape may trigger the perception of a color, or a heard word may evoke a specific taste. This is known as lexical-gustatory synesthesia, which is one of the rarest forms of synesthesia.

Synesthesia ability

Some chefs, gourmets, and flavor experts possess a form of taste synesthesia, which they utilize in food preparation, accurate tasting, or flavor pairing. Studies have shown that individuals with synesthetic abilities can reliably perceive relationships between unrelated sensory stimuli. Research has been conducted on the brains of people with synesthesia. One of the most significant research methods used is functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI). This imaging technique identifies which regions of the brain are most active. For instance, when subjects are presented with words, activation has been observed in brain regions associated with taste. Moreover, when examining different areas of synesthetic individuals' brains, it has been discovered that they contain more myelin. You may ask, “What is myelin?” Myelin is a fatty sheath within the nervous system that strengthens, protects, and insulates nerve cells. Its primary contribution to synesthetes is enabling faster transmission of electrical signals between neurons.

Synesthetic Chefs

One of the most well-known synesthetic chefs is Taria Camerino, an American pastry chef. She claims that everything she sees and hears has a taste. Camerino integrates this extraordinary sensory ability into the dishes she serves her guests. For instance, she has presented menus featuring moss-flavored cotton candy and oyster ceviche, inspired by the taste of music. In one instance, guests noted that while listening to Tchaikovsky’s 1812 Overture, the intensity of flavors rose and fell in tandem with the musical waves. This unique  experience highlights the seamless connection between music and taste for individuals with synesthesia.

Gastronomic Synesthesia

The fascinating and mysterious neurological phenomenon of gastronomic synesthesia has increasingly become a subject of scientific research. In both neurobiology and gastronomic experiences, it has the potential to significantly enhance multi-sensory integration. To provide context, in 2017, a workshop on multi-sensory approaches to human-food interaction highlighted the work of Carlos Velasco and colleagues, who emphasized the intersection of multi-sensory science and culinary innovation. This integration has allowed gastronomy to incorporate multi-sensory structures influenced by taste, flavor, and olfactory cues.

The newly emerging data and its reflection in the culinary world have brought forth the potential to "hack" our sensory perceptions and thereby elevate gastronomic experiences. Findings indicate that multi-sensory food designs, created to stimulate more than one human sense, will empower chefs to control and manipulate diverse sensory inputs, contributing to the multi-sensory nature of flavors and dishes.

Stay well,

Assoc. Prof. Murat Doğan