A Day (& a 1/2) in the Life of a Flavor 101® Attendee
May 8, 2013
Recently, FONA International hosted another awesome Flavor 101. It was the second of the spring 2013 Flavor University season and one of the larger attended classes; lots of new faces, connections & opportunities. Flavor 101 is the foundation of the Flavor University class offerings, so it was very exciting to see so many new people come in from around the world — including a gentleman from Barcelona!
The day & a half course opens after lunch. Attendee introductions are made and then you jump right into the nitty gritty. What is a flavor? How is it defined? Why is it used? Dr. Bob, the Flavor 101 Faculty Lead, has no problem explaining. He loves it and it shows.
Throughout the day you begin to realize that there is so much more to a flavor than you thought – sensory testing, regulatory guidelines and consumer insights, just to name a few! What’s even more exciting is that the flavors featured in a Trends presentation are actually being used in the cocktails, appetizers & dinner! If your bucket list includes eating Yuzu, prepare to cross it off.
Class resumes the next day after breakfast. The morning starts off right because you learn that things such as electronic noses & tongues actually exist. In fact, you see these machines in real life when you participate in the round robin lab activities. These, I feel, are what really tie the class together. Why wouldn’t you want hands-on experience with the very people that create flavor?
By the end of the day, your brain is chocked full of glorious flavor knowledge. So much that you may have the urge to start a new flavor project the second you get back to the office. You have nothing to worry about… you just learned from the experts!
The day & a half course opens after lunch. Attendee introductions are made and then you jump right into the nitty gritty. What is a flavor? How is it defined? Why is it used? Dr. Bob, the Flavor 101 Faculty Lead, has no problem explaining. He loves it and it shows.
Throughout the day you begin to realize that there is so much more to a flavor than you thought – sensory testing, regulatory guidelines and consumer insights, just to name a few! What’s even more exciting is that the flavors featured in a Trends presentation are actually being used in the cocktails, appetizers & dinner! If your bucket list includes eating Yuzu, prepare to cross it off.
Class resumes the next day after breakfast. The morning starts off right because you learn that things such as electronic noses & tongues actually exist. In fact, you see these machines in real life when you participate in the round robin lab activities. These, I feel, are what really tie the class together. Why wouldn’t you want hands-on experience with the very people that create flavor?
By the end of the day, your brain is chocked full of glorious flavor knowledge. So much that you may have the urge to start a new flavor project the second you get back to the office. You have nothing to worry about… you just learned from the experts!
