Are you Sweet or Sour? (or maybe even a little Salty?)
New quiz #MapYourTaste tracks the tastebuds of Europe
Brussels, Tuesday 28th April, 2015. Today a new quest is launched to find out what tastes we prefer and how they are affected by where we live. Consumers are being invited to play the Friends of Glass #MapYourTaste fun quiz in order to find out their own personal taste profile – be it salty, sweet, bland, sour, bitter, spicy or cool.
The answers will build into an online Taste Map, with the final result revealing the ‘Taste of Europe’ - a fascinating picture of preferences across the continent. Participants can see how their individual preferences compare to others, both at home and abroad. To take part, consumers simply log onto the Friends of Glass website to play, where they can also learn interesting facts about taste, why glass is best for enjoying and preserving the pure taste of food and drink.
To create the Taste Map, Friends of Glass, the influential community who prefer to choose glass packaging for health, taste and the environment, first joined forces with a panel of renowned taste experts to identify taste foundations for map.
The taste experts’ panel featured the UK’s own 2014 Beer Sommelier of the Year Jane Peyton, who comments: “It’s so interesting to consider what tastes we are naturally drawn to and how much where we grow up influences our preferences. The Friends of Glass Taste of Europe map is going to prove a fascinating insight into this. I had no idea when I was younger that I would one day become a beer sommelier and favour bitterness – I didn’t even think then that I had a particularly good sense of taste but you can train yourself. Practice really does make perfect. I'm not perfect yet, so I'll have to keep practicing!”
The Friends of Glass #MapYourTaste campaign will feature in several major European food and drink events during 2015, including Taste of London, Regent’s Park, London, 17-21 June; the EXPO Milano, 25-29 May and the Salon de la Revue du Vin de France, 5 June. The campaign will continue until the end of 2015 with plans to visit other European cities such as Hamburg, Munich and Madrid.
How to take part and #MapYourTaste
- Go to www.friendsofglass.co.uk/mapyourtaste and complete the quiz to #MapYourTaste
- Discover how your preferences will feed into the Taste Map
- Learn more about different tastes from peer consumers and our Taste Makers
- Join the Friends of Glass Community on Twitter. Find us at @friendsofglass or Facebook, or on www.friendsofglass.co.uk/mapyourtaste to stay up-to-date with the #MapYourTaste campaign and share your results.
- Enjoy the pure taste of your food and drink. Choose glass
For more information on the #MapYourTaste campaign, please contact:
Greta Agar-Hutton, Third Rock Communications, +44 (0)7880 553673, greta@thirdrockcomms.co.uk
Amanda Barry-Hirst, Third Rock Communications, +44 (0)7860 313576, amanda@thirdrockcomms.co.uk
Rebecca Cocking, Head of Container Affairs, British Glass, r.cocking@britglass.org.uk (0)114 2901850
Editor’s Notes:
About Friends of Glass:
Friends of Glass is an influential European consumer forum that supports and promotes the right of consumers everywhere to choose food and drink products in glass packaging. It unites all those who believe glass is the clear choice for taste preservation, personal health and the environment. Friends of Glass was initiated in 2009 by the European Container Glass Federation (FEVE) in response to a pan-European survey, commissioned by FEVE in September 2008, in conjunction with the research agency, InSites; which found that 74% of European consumers prefer glass packaging for their food and drinks. Today, this figure has increased to 87%.
Defining Taste via the Friends of Glass Taste Map:
Salty, sweet, bland, sour or bitter are five taste categories that are generally agreed as the core parameters to define taste. Spicy and cool tastes can be added to broaden the spectrum. Friends of Glass has created a foundation taste map with global taste experts - this map will act as the basis for the campaign which will be further elaborated on as consumers contribute their own preferred taste.
Taste Experts Panel:
Andreas Larsson, Swedish Wine Sommelier, voted Best Sommelier of the World; Arno Steguweit, Europe’s first Water Sommelier from Germany; Caroline Furstoss, French Wine Sommelier 2014; Professor Giorgio Calabrese, a renowned Italian Nutritionist; Guillermo Cruz, voted Spain’s Best Sommelier in 2014; Jane Peyton, UK Beer Sommelier of the Year 2014-2015; and Christophe Baert, chef and Vice-President of the Belgian Euro-Toques Association
About Jane Peyton: Jane Peyton is Britain's Beer Sommelier of the Year 2014-15, writer, and the author of several books including 'Beer o' Clock' and 'School of Booze'. Her journalistic work has appeared in British newspapers including the Guardian and Independent. Jane is a regular guest on BBC radio & TV talking about beer. Beer is her passion and Jane is an enthusiastic evange-ale-ist and works hard to convert people to become beer drinkers, to appreciate the world's favourite alcoholic drink, and educate people how to match beer with food. She is the driving force behind Britain's first national beer day (Beer Day Britain) which will happen on June 15th 2015. Jane is such a fan of beer that she has dreams about it!
About Glass Packaging: An increasing number of Europeans surveyed (87% in 2014 compared to 74% of those surveyed in 2010) recommend glass as their number one packaging choice for food or beverages. This clearly demonstrates consumers trust glass as one of the most pure and inert materials. Glass is made of natural ingredients, is inert, and has no chemical layers. This also means that it doesn’t alter the taste of your food and drinks, and protects the taste and quality of the contents within – which means that glass packaging can also help reduce food waste by extending shelf life. Scientists have also conducted extensive research on the health and safety benefits of glass packaging.
About British Glass: The British Glass Manufacturers’ Confederation represents the interests of all sectors of the glass industry in the UK. Its main activity is in representing the industry at European, national and local level on a wide range of topical legislative issues. It also conducts independent research into all aspects of glass production and technology. http://www.britglass.co..uk
#MapYourTaste