Appetite and Taste

There must be a strong physiological bond / affinity between these two aspects of the senses, such that it seems as though you can't have one without the other.

Because of my two months of illness, I no longer have any appetite, not even for the things I used to love to eat — for example the exquisite carrot cake made by Pastry Pants Bakery in Swarthmore; a scrumptious piece of it has been sitting on my kitchen counter for two weeks.  In the past, I would have devoured it upon sight.

Now, about the only thing that attracts my eating attention is feta cheese, especially from the barrel in its brine, which I consume copiously.  Everything else I put in my mouth tastes cottony.

I don't even like fresh water any more — sè 澀 ("astringent").

 

Selected readings

• "Mouthfeel" (4/10/19)
• "The mystery of "mouthfeel'"