Hey, we know you enjoy a stiff old fashioned or an extra extra dry martini as much as the next ibiber, but sometimes going hard just isn't an option. But that doesn't mean you keep guzzling cranberry juice and soda. Wouldn't it be great if you could enjoy a mocktail that looks and tastes just like the real thing?
Today we'll look at the science of what alcohol actually tastes like, how we can mimic it, and whether it's a good idea. Later this week we'll look at the flavors that emerge in a good mood and how we can recreate them with some real recipes.
The prevailing wisdom seems to hold that you can't imitate the taste of alcohol without actually using it. Is it true?
Let's take a step back. Perhaps a better first question is:
What exactly does alcohol taste like?
The answer to this question may not be as obvious as you think.
Of course, any whiskey lover will be quick to point out that aged spirits contain notes of caramel, vanilla, cloves, and dozens, if not hundreds, of other aromatic notes. Understood.
But what about plain old ethanol? This is what we know:
- Most people associate the taste of strong alcohol with 'the burning sensation'. Scientifically, this is known as a trigeminal sensation, and you feel it through your pain nerves rather than through your taste buds.
- Ethanol also has a "drying" effect at high strength. It disrupts the mucus in your mouth: Swirl a sip of bourbon for more than a few seconds and you'll end up with an astringent, dry mouth.
Does low-proof alcohol taste different than high-proof?
First of all, it's important to remember that a minority of drinkers are bona fidesupertasters who experience alcohol in any dosage as much more bitter than everyone else.
That said, the research shows that alcohol at 10% ABV is universally described as 'bitter', while many tasters also described it as slightly sweet.1
What effect does the "slightly bitter and slightly sweet" taste of alcohol have on a low alcohol beverage? Not very much, as it turns out.
Think e.ghow non-alcoholic beer is made. 'Beer', as it is affectionately called, begins life as normal beer. The bottlers then distill out all the alcohol using a vacuum...
...And that's it. They just take the liquor out and sell the remaining liquid as is.
Even brewers of high-quality beer don't bother adding back flavor to replace the lost alcohol. Beause, as Gizmodo put it, alcohol "gives [beer] that dryness, and it can bring out some of the sweet flavors in the malt, but alcohol doesn't really add any flavor on its own."
[1]Bitter and sweet components of ethanol taste in humans
How to simulate alcohol
We have established that alcohol tastes goodtingling, drying, bitter and sweet.
To recreate these effects in a non-alcoholic drink, we just need to add ingredients that produce the same effect.
- The best analogy to the combustion of alcohol comes from spicy ingredients such as ginger or chili. Although the compounds involved are different*, both stimulate the same nerve that is affected by alcohol.
- Astringency is harder to replicate. At home, the best option is an excess of black tea, which contains naturally occurring tannins that mimic the astringency of alcohol.**
- Excessive tea is also one of the few readily available ingredients I've tried that can add a respectable amount of bitterness to a drink. Most co*cktail bitters use herbs such as cinchona or gentian, which are harder to come by. To make infused tea, use twice as many tea bags as you normally would use and let the tea simmer for 10 minutes.
Capsaicin is responsible for the spice in chili. The compound gingerol in ginger is usually associated with its bite, but actually a derivative called shogaol is formed when ginger is cooked (such as in syrup) and is actually spicier. I compared fresh ginger juice with ginger. boiled syrup, and it is quite noticeable - and cool. **The astringent action of alcohol works differently from that caused by tannins, but the effect is the same. With alcohol, the chemical actually draws water from the cells in the tongue. Tannins, on the other hand, bind with the proteins that make the mucus feel 'wet', making your tongue feel drier.
Should a good mocktail taste like alcohol?
If you've been following along, you may have concluded that the next time you serve as designated driver, you should brew a batch of bitter, spicy, slightly sweet tea. Disgusting.
But there's no reason to do that. That's because alcohol's true appeal doesn't really come from its own flavor properties, but rather from the way it interacts with other compounds to create otherwise unattainable flavors.
Consider bitterness, astringency and spice as creative ways to enhance an already tasty mocktail, to add the light feeling you might be sipping on a real co*cktail.
Next, we'll look at some of the complex flavors that develop in spiritshow to add these complexities to some innovative mocktail recipes.
