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Elements of Taste: Understanding What We Like and Why
From My Little Pony to the Sex Pistols: An engaging exploration of why we love what we love (and hate what we hate). We all have our most and least favorite things. But why?
This funny and well-researched book brings together the latest findings from the worlds of psychology, neuroscience, market research, and more to examine what taste really means--and what it can teach us about ourselves.
Covering kitsch, nostalgia, "comfort food," snobbery, bad taste, and what it means to be "basic," this will appeal to those who who devours popular and not-so-popular culture.
This funny and well-researched book brings together the latest findings from the worlds of psychology, neuroscience, market research, and more to examine what taste really means--and what it can teach us about ourselves.
Covering kitsch, nostalgia, "comfort food," snobbery, bad taste, and what it means to be "basic," this will appeal to those who who devours popular and not-so-popular culture.
240 pages, Paperback
First published October 17, 2017
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485 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 28 of 28 reviews
November 4, 2017
I have quite a bit to say about this book, and it's probably going to come out disjointed and mostly critical. Before you think I hate it, though, I refer you to the four stars I gave it. Overall, I liked it. More on that later.
I haven't read Errett's previous book, The Elements of Wit, and upon reading this book, the similarity between his writing style and Malcolm Gladwell's was apparent within the first few pages; in short, both of them find interesting little tidbits and apply them to social and psychological phenomena. However, whereas Gladwell is an academic at heart who plays a journalist on TV, Errett is a journalist at heart who plays an academic on TV.
And that hits at this book's key weakness. Errett's "theory", as it were, seems to be that our tastes in culture are somehow (biologically? evolutionarily? metaphorically? it's not clear) tied to our tastes in food, and Elements of Taste is constructed with chapters on the five tastes (sweet, sour, salty, bitter, and umami) with different pieces of culture tied to these tastes. Hello Kitty is obviously sweet, while Kanye West is bitter. Overall, though, this seems to be more of a grand metaphor than a theory behind why we like and why (which is what the title promises). Almost no causation here, and most of the correlation included is tenuous at best. Very little concrete empirical evidence is cited as to how this actually works. Looking for a study that shows people who like Hello Kitty also put a lot of sugar in their coffee? You won't find it here.
So why did I give it four stars? I don't know. Maybe I'm "sweet".
No, actually, I do have my reasons. First of all, Errett, like Gladwell, is a very engaging writer, and he's funnier than Gladwell. (Sorry, Malcolm.) Secondly, the real gems in this book are not the chapters on tastes but rather the short essays that Errett calls "palate cleansers" between the chapters. This is where you find the really interesting social commentary. "The Myth of Supertasters" is fantastic, particularly if, like me, you previously thought that supertasters were an actual thing. "The Wisdom and Foolishness of Crowds" is also particularly instructive. (I feel like I'm being really vague here. Sorry. I'm trying not to include any spoilers. But these are good sections.)
The biggest reason for giving this four stars, though, is that while reading this book I found myself trying to categorize a-la-Errett the culture that I was consuming. The Story of Arthur Truluv? Definitely sweet. Entropy in Bloom? Bitter AF. The Netflix show Atypical? Lots of sweetness, lots of saltiness, like a chocolate-covered pretzel. See? While in the end it may be just a metaphor, it's still a pretty fun one.
In conclusion, if you like this kind of thing, it's definitely worth a read. However, you should:
1) Keep your expectations reasonable. This is not going to blow the lid off of any psychosocial understanding that you currently have. It's mostly mind candy (aka pretty "sweet"; see? I'm doing it again), but in all likelihood, you'll still learn a few interesting nuggets.
2) Read it sooner rather than later. This book is full of up-to-the-minute references that are fun now but may not age particularly well.
I haven't read Errett's previous book, The Elements of Wit, and upon reading this book, the similarity between his writing style and Malcolm Gladwell's was apparent within the first few pages; in short, both of them find interesting little tidbits and apply them to social and psychological phenomena. However, whereas Gladwell is an academic at heart who plays a journalist on TV, Errett is a journalist at heart who plays an academic on TV.
And that hits at this book's key weakness. Errett's "theory", as it were, seems to be that our tastes in culture are somehow (biologically? evolutionarily? metaphorically? it's not clear) tied to our tastes in food, and Elements of Taste is constructed with chapters on the five tastes (sweet, sour, salty, bitter, and umami) with different pieces of culture tied to these tastes. Hello Kitty is obviously sweet, while Kanye West is bitter. Overall, though, this seems to be more of a grand metaphor than a theory behind why we like and why (which is what the title promises). Almost no causation here, and most of the correlation included is tenuous at best. Very little concrete empirical evidence is cited as to how this actually works. Looking for a study that shows people who like Hello Kitty also put a lot of sugar in their coffee? You won't find it here.
So why did I give it four stars? I don't know. Maybe I'm "sweet".
No, actually, I do have my reasons. First of all, Errett, like Gladwell, is a very engaging writer, and he's funnier than Gladwell. (Sorry, Malcolm.) Secondly, the real gems in this book are not the chapters on tastes but rather the short essays that Errett calls "palate cleansers" between the chapters. This is where you find the really interesting social commentary. "The Myth of Supertasters" is fantastic, particularly if, like me, you previously thought that supertasters were an actual thing. "The Wisdom and Foolishness of Crowds" is also particularly instructive. (I feel like I'm being really vague here. Sorry. I'm trying not to include any spoilers. But these are good sections.)
The biggest reason for giving this four stars, though, is that while reading this book I found myself trying to categorize a-la-Errett the culture that I was consuming. The Story of Arthur Truluv? Definitely sweet. Entropy in Bloom? Bitter AF. The Netflix show Atypical? Lots of sweetness, lots of saltiness, like a chocolate-covered pretzel. See? While in the end it may be just a metaphor, it's still a pretty fun one.
In conclusion, if you like this kind of thing, it's definitely worth a read. However, you should:
1) Keep your expectations reasonable. This is not going to blow the lid off of any psychosocial understanding that you currently have. It's mostly mind candy (aka pretty "sweet"; see? I'm doing it again), but in all likelihood, you'll still learn a few interesting nuggets.
2) Read it sooner rather than later. This book is full of up-to-the-minute references that are fun now but may not age particularly well.
July 18, 2019
One of the problems of not living in the northern hemisphere, more particularly North America, is that books that include "you" or "me" in their titles rarely have me in mind. To be fair there are plenty of Australian authors who act similarly, but this is a particular problem essentially located elsewhere.
What this means, of course is that I naturally bristle, when I see a text that is going to tell me what i like or how I act. It's a bit of a trap, actually, because I'm genuinely interested in personality and you never know what might turn up, particularly in a book going cheap. It's then just a minot tisk and you can write it off as a "learning experience" if you like that kind of jargon. If you pay full price, as I did with Daniel Gilbert's Stumbling on Happiness ( a recommendation from a colleague) then you can be part of the way though and tire of the interminable claims or assertions that you do this or that when you haven't and wouldn't do any of the activities suggested.
Benjamin Errett's book is different, of course, ultimately a collection of musings based on labels derived from kinds of taste. Interestingly, his starting point is music and he refers to work by Rentfrow and others on what people like in music, a research area fraught with problems in my view as the research, as in this case, seems very superficial and tenuous. The acronym here is MUSIC; an earlier acronym was STOMP, in which it appears that Rentfrow was also involved.
Being of a particular age, I've bought thousands of LPs and CDs (I still have 900 of the latter) and I can't locate myself anywhere in these models. To be fair, Rentfrow is located in the UK, which mediates the problem I started with, but not by much.
Errett overlays the MUSIC model with the usual 5 tastes, as a precursor to launching into brief discussions about aspects of taste, from food to the arts. His overlay is unconvincing, but perhaps this is because the original source isn't all that robust.
This rather unconvincing start tempted me to put the book aside and try to push it on to someone else (I'm one of those people who doesn't want to have on display, or even own, a book I find embarrassing. On the other hand I'll keep something i like even if it's terrible. Music collections can be like that)
Fortunately, Errett improves a little and there are pages that are genuinely interesting. But this soon dissipates and the majority of the book is really better served by a quick browse.
To be fair, I may be in the wrong country, the wrong age group, or the wrong interests. Notwithstanding that, I can still appreciate something that hangs together well, even if it's not for me. You only have to learn very little for reading to be worthwhile.
The rating refers to the4 coherent parts of the book, as i sat it. I've also downloaded a number of journal articles by Rentfrow et al, some of which look really interesting, but there are a number of topics.
What this means, of course is that I naturally bristle, when I see a text that is going to tell me what i like or how I act. It's a bit of a trap, actually, because I'm genuinely interested in personality and you never know what might turn up, particularly in a book going cheap. It's then just a minot tisk and you can write it off as a "learning experience" if you like that kind of jargon. If you pay full price, as I did with Daniel Gilbert's Stumbling on Happiness ( a recommendation from a colleague) then you can be part of the way though and tire of the interminable claims or assertions that you do this or that when you haven't and wouldn't do any of the activities suggested.
Benjamin Errett's book is different, of course, ultimately a collection of musings based on labels derived from kinds of taste. Interestingly, his starting point is music and he refers to work by Rentfrow and others on what people like in music, a research area fraught with problems in my view as the research, as in this case, seems very superficial and tenuous. The acronym here is MUSIC; an earlier acronym was STOMP, in which it appears that Rentfrow was also involved.
Being of a particular age, I've bought thousands of LPs and CDs (I still have 900 of the latter) and I can't locate myself anywhere in these models. To be fair, Rentfrow is located in the UK, which mediates the problem I started with, but not by much.
Errett overlays the MUSIC model with the usual 5 tastes, as a precursor to launching into brief discussions about aspects of taste, from food to the arts. His overlay is unconvincing, but perhaps this is because the original source isn't all that robust.
This rather unconvincing start tempted me to put the book aside and try to push it on to someone else (I'm one of those people who doesn't want to have on display, or even own, a book I find embarrassing. On the other hand I'll keep something i like even if it's terrible. Music collections can be like that)
Fortunately, Errett improves a little and there are pages that are genuinely interesting. But this soon dissipates and the majority of the book is really better served by a quick browse.
To be fair, I may be in the wrong country, the wrong age group, or the wrong interests. Notwithstanding that, I can still appreciate something that hangs together well, even if it's not for me. You only have to learn very little for reading to be worthwhile.
The rating refers to the4 coherent parts of the book, as i sat it. I've also downloaded a number of journal articles by Rentfrow et al, some of which look really interesting, but there are a number of topics.
Read
July 28, 2020As a librarian, I'm glad that this book will have a permanent spot on my bookshelf. It is a fun, quick read that explores why we like what we like. Entertaining and informative!
May 19, 2024
I'm not sure it all adds up to anything meaningful, but it was a fun book with interesting ideas.
I don't think it delivered on its premise, but that would be a tall order, no doubt. It seemed to concentrate more on what I think of as trends more than taste, but again, overall, I enjoyed it.
I don't think it delivered on its premise, but that would be a tall order, no doubt. It seemed to concentrate more on what I think of as trends more than taste, but again, overall, I enjoyed it.
May 1, 2018
I saw this book at the library and was intrigued, particularly since I've started to wonder if I have bad taste since I like so many ice skating programs and costumes that other people seem to think are terrible!
I didn't actually find out if my taste was bad, but it was an interesting read nonetheless, with the author using food tastes (sweet, salty, bitter, sour and umami) to describe various non-food things from books to music to movies. Unsurprisingly to me, I like a lot of sweet things, both in terms of food and entertainment. However, it was also good to get an overview of the other tastes too.
This book doesn't tell you want to like - which is a good thing - but suggests what you MIGHT like when you're looking for new books, musics etc.
I didn't actually find out if my taste was bad, but it was an interesting read nonetheless, with the author using food tastes (sweet, salty, bitter, sour and umami) to describe various non-food things from books to music to movies. Unsurprisingly to me, I like a lot of sweet things, both in terms of food and entertainment. However, it was also good to get an overview of the other tastes too.
This book doesn't tell you want to like - which is a good thing - but suggests what you MIGHT like when you're looking for new books, musics etc.
June 28, 2022
I picked up this book at a second-hand bookstore because it looked quirky and I wanted to learn more about myself. Unfortunately, I found this book disjointed for me as I couldn't understand many references Errett made. Perhaps I'm not the target age group, or just not cultured enough to understand jokes and references he pulls in at random intervals. Nonetheless, there were some interesting sections and though I couldn't relate to much of the book, I applaud Errett for making the grand attempt to make a link between our gustatory and cultural tastes. I do see it, but I'm not too convinced either, it's just a novel way of looking at things. This will be a good read for people who keep in touch with pop culture or just bored and want recommendations.
January 11, 2018
I was drawn to this book because I've wondered what it is that makes us like the things we like. I've read a couple books on this subject specifically focused on music ("This is Your Brain on Music" and "Why You Love Music"), but my questions still weren't really answered.
"Elements of Taste" breaks down tastes in everything (food, music, tv, movies, etc) by grouping it based on the 5 flavour palettes: sweet, salty, sour, bitter and umami. I particularly liked how the author created "Tasting Notes", focusing on certain artists and shows and their flavour profiles (Coldplay was 70% sweet, 10% sour, 10% salty, 10% bitter). This book did give me a lot of insight, but I still don't feel it fully answered the question of why we like what we like.
"Elements of Taste" breaks down tastes in everything (food, music, tv, movies, etc) by grouping it based on the 5 flavour palettes: sweet, salty, sour, bitter and umami. I particularly liked how the author created "Tasting Notes", focusing on certain artists and shows and their flavour profiles (Coldplay was 70% sweet, 10% sour, 10% salty, 10% bitter). This book did give me a lot of insight, but I still don't feel it fully answered the question of why we like what we like.
August 1, 2019
A very unique book that I enjoyed a lot, almost read straight through.
In mapping pop culture to five basic flavours (sweet, sour, salty, bitter, umami) the author has found an interesting way to talk about music, film, television, fandom etc.
There are some great examples of cultural oddities like the brony fad and there are at least two appropriate early Simpsons references (which will always win points with me).
Illustrations, tasting menus and palate cleansers give the book more flavour (😉)
This book is very umami!
In mapping pop culture to five basic flavours (sweet, sour, salty, bitter, umami) the author has found an interesting way to talk about music, film, television, fandom etc.
There are some great examples of cultural oddities like the brony fad and there are at least two appropriate early Simpsons references (which will always win points with me).
Illustrations, tasting menus and palate cleansers give the book more flavour (😉)
This book is very umami!
April 7, 2020
Actual rating: 3.5/5
The premise of this nonfiction book was really interesting to me, but ended up not quite delivering on what I was expecting. I wish more time was spent on the psychology and cultural impact of how tastes change, but I guess that wasn't what the author was going for. I thought that the framing device of using sweet, salty, sour, bitter and umami to describe tastes in music, movies, etc. was interesting and the "flavor profiles" of different pop culture phenomenons were fun, but overall I felt like I didn't learn as much as I was hoping to.
The premise of this nonfiction book was really interesting to me, but ended up not quite delivering on what I was expecting. I wish more time was spent on the psychology and cultural impact of how tastes change, but I guess that wasn't what the author was going for. I thought that the framing device of using sweet, salty, sour, bitter and umami to describe tastes in music, movies, etc. was interesting and the "flavor profiles" of different pop culture phenomenons were fun, but overall I felt like I didn't learn as much as I was hoping to.
November 19, 2017
Somewhere not too far north of Gladwell, it's a collection without the focus it needs. In some places it recognizes the difference between culture, fashion, and taste, and, perhaps, the need for these to be separate categories. In other places it problematizes by ignoring or eliding these differences. A light read quickly becomes a frustrating one. If you like Gladwell, you'll love it. If you're keen on aesthetics, move on.
February 3, 2018
The central point of this book is fundamentally interesting: what if our literal tastes determined our figurative cultural tastes? What if, for example, we could categorize our favorite shows and books into flavors? Errett does this for us with clever wit and serious chops. It was a funny and thoughtful, if a bit of a gentle, read. Worth your time, but not indelible. Thanks to the author for an enjoyable few hours!
February 17, 2018
Nice theory about culture and personal preferences built along an extended analogy of the taste buds. Reads like a very long article from Salon, Vox, The Atlantic, etc. The author seriously lacks in understanding of certain artistic traditions (his take on opera is flat wrong and his grasp of visual arts is spotty at best) and what draws people to them as naturally as he is drawn to pop culture, which I assume is his regular beat for the glossies.
February 9, 2018
This book centers around a book long metaphor involving two different meanings of the word taste. For instance, what would it mean if you could say that a book was salty, sweet, sour, bitter or umami? The book develops each concept with lots of examples. 50% sweet, 1% sour, 5% salty, 15% bitter and 35% umami by it's own reckoning I think. Read it and see if you agree with me.
April 3, 2018
A great non fiction for entertainment.I grabbed this book on the way out of the library as the cover intrigued me. It was a short lighthearted easy read that I found myself unable to put down. The writer was funny and mentioned many things from my childhood which had me hooked. Is this a book based on fact or lots of scientific evidence? No it was not. But funny no less.
October 3, 2019
This book is an extremely well written piece of literature and an interesting read. The author does a splendid job of balancing pop culture, history, and plain goofiness with a science-based approach at identifying what we like and why, then relating it to the five senses of taste. In layman’s terms, this is a fun read that will keep you intrigued from front to finish.
December 13, 2017
An opinion based book on pop culture. The writing is not particularly stimulating and feels a bit scattered. It drags on a bit even though it's designed to be a quick read. Nothing really sticks with me and probably will forget about it all soon.
January 26, 2018
Errett's writing is easy to read and amusing. I found myself ready bits outloud to my husband. Unfortunately, the ideas are a bit sophomoric, and at times the book feels like a high school independent study. Lots of correlation and not a lot of science.
September 25, 2018
I found it to be a pretty easy light read and but found it read too much like a Buzzfeed article and I don’t think it took a deep enough dive into the philosophy of taste and why people like what they like.
July 23, 2019
Really interesting premise: that popular cultural elements can be thought of like the 5 basic flavors of sweet, sour, salty, bitter and umami. It's an interesting way to think of 'what am I in the mood for' ... especially when faced with the Netflix library of never-ending options!
did-not-finish
January 11, 2025DNF after intro - idea of mapping flavors to taste profiles sounds neat but doesn't bear out -- I wasn't familiar with most of the examples they broke down so couldn't use that to evaluate the theory
January 19, 2018
I loved this book! It does a great job of explaining the connections of taste and the breakdowns of examples are great.
October 22, 2018
I did not enjoy this book at all
July 23, 2019
Super interesante y divertido como asocia los sabores más sencillos con otros componentes d nosotros. Esta matizon
February 26, 2020
Hard to understand if you do not know so much about American culture. Period.
September 21, 2020
Unexpectedly good. Although this book deals with primary commercial tastes (which are not my own), I still found the author's take compelling and thought-provoking.
June 27, 2025
Quick read and some interesting commentary but wouldn’t say the logic is completely sound throughout.
October 11, 2025
Great theory
April 2, 2024
Interesting perspectives and theories explained tastefully with humor.
Displaying 1 - 28 of 28 reviews