Today the Times dining section chronicles the cult phenomenon of “flavor tripping parties” at which certain yuppies, jaded from having taken too many real drugs (or maybe just too uptight to try real drugs), consume miracle fruit, which “rewires the way the palate perceives sour flavors for an hour or so.” Give $15 to a lawyer-cum-dealer who calls himself the Supreme Commander, swish a small West African berry around your mouth for a minute, and virtually every food will taste sweet, from Brussels sprouts to oysters to goat cheese to Guinness mixed with lemon sorbet. The lawyer/dealer, who’s seriously rocking a blue track suit in the video accompanying the article, claims that people under the influence become “literally like wild animals” around food. This might be a bit of an overstatement. As far as I can tell, all the guests in the video look uncomfortable to be surrounded by forty strangers who are swigging Tabasco and vinegar.
All right, clearly I’m incredibly jealous. Eating under the influence miracle fruit has officially replaced dining in total darkness as my number one trippy food fantasy. Who wouldn't want to bite into a Brussels sprout to find that it tastes like fruit? Seriously. Even though I think it might be a bit of a buzz kill to have to consume the berry with someone who insists on being called the Supreme Commander, I would go to a flavor tripping party in a heartbeat.
Also: Is it just me, or does a Guinness and lemon sorbet float sound like it would taste great no matter what?
4 comments:
What a nightmare. Brussels sprouts that taste sweet? I'll pass.
Come on! It sounds awesome! And it's not as though they'd taste sweet forever…
Laura, I think your comment about Guinness and lemon sorbet is well taken. (Do you remember getting tipsy on Lager and Limes in London with us?)
Ah, yes…the days when a lager and lime could get me tipsy. How long ago it was.
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