Skip to content
Search AI Powered

Latest Stories

People Describe What Is A Treat For The Nose But Not The Tongue

People Describe What Is A Treat For The Nose But Not The Tongue
Battlecreek Coffee Roasters/Unsplash

Putting on that pot of coffee in the morning, it smells so good you can almost taste it.

Well, actually, you pretty much can.

Our sense of smell is incredibly important to our sense of taste.

Science World said:

"Our sense of smell in responsible for about 80% of what we taste."
"Without our sense of smell, our sense of taste is limited to only five distinct sensations: sweet, salty, sour, bitter and the newly discovered 'umami' or savory sensation."
"All other flavors that we experience come from smell."

However, sometimes those smells are deceiving. There are certain things that just shouldn't be eaten.


Redditor n0_y0urm0m asked:

"What smells way better than it tastes?"

These Redditors tried these already so you don't have to.

That fresh from the dryer smell.

"Clean laundry."

- Akiram

"Came here to say laundry detergent. I've always wanted to eat the powder kind."

- Betty_Jean

Great for baking but not on its own.

"Vanilla extract."

- Mettabox452

"Because it's mostly grain alcohol with a tiny bit of potent beans."

- sameth1

"However! You may enjoy Vanilla bean paste should you want to taste that smell."

- kaikura89

"Surprised cocoa powder hasn't been mentioned yet."

- SirBroccolingtonIII

"Don't make hot chocolate with cocoa powder. Found that out the hard way as a ten year old... it just tasted like disappointment. Adding vanilla extract doesn't help either."

- 8dogsinatrenchcoat

It's meant to smell good, not taste good.

"Candles. Yankee Candles especially. They smell so tasty."

- thedudeisalwayshere

"For the price they run for, they should be edible."

- /FuzzMcBeefy84

"If they were edible, I'd be on My 600lb Life."

- dodexahedron

Ouch.

"Campfires... tastes like burning."

- rickm3

"What about people who drunk Islay Scotch?"

- SculpinIPAlcoholic

"My husband drinks Lagavulin Scotch. Its tastes like buttery campfire. Awful but damn is it smooth."

- plz2meatyu

"I love Lagavulin but my wife thinks it smells like burnt bandaids. And she's not wrong haha."

- jmaca90

Very unexpected.

"My nose. Ha!"

"In the same way my mouth tastes better than it smells."

- adept_ignoramus

"Unexpected dad jokes are the best kind."

- WickedEng90

"Came here for this. Studied sensory science at uni and man, mouths and noses are wild."

- FriedBeeNuts

There's no reason it shouldn't taste good.

"Chapstick, definitely chap stick."

- Simpl3Nik

"Cherry scented chap stick smells soooo good. Then you put it on and lick your lips… nope, what an awful taste!"

- wickedbunny42

"I don't know why but when I put on scent chap stick, I can taste the flavor even though I cant????????????"

- Brilliant_Surprise_3

We all wanted to know.

"Those scented markers from the late 80s early 90s. They smell great, but I can confirm they taste like sh*t."

- snowf*ckerforreal

"The Mr. Sketch ones?"

- xscumfucx

"Yep, those are the ones. I tasted all of them just to be sure. The lies… they tasted nothing like the fruity deliciousness they're masquerading as lol."

- snowf*ckerforreal

Watch where you're working.

"Petrol."

- Punyeah_

"How do you know it doesn't taste good?"

- asdfoneplusone

"It doesn't. It made my tongue numb. Hard lesson on why you don't lay under the fuel line you're undoing."

- KotexAvenger

It's not like breath spray.

"Perfume."

- Definition_Only

"This brought back memories of the time me and my sister sprayed a sh*t ton of perfume into our mouths because we thought it was essentially the same thing as breath freshening spray."

- DevTheDummy

Maybe you were a curious kid and you tried the markers that smelled good or the bottle of vanilla extract.

It's totally normal.

Our sense of smell is important to our safety and in helping us detect what we can or cannot consume. I guess some of these can be pretty tricky if you don't know any better.

Want to "know" more?

Sign up for the Knowable newsletter here.

Never miss another big, odd, funny, or heartbreaking moment again.

More from Trending/best-of-reddit

Screenshots of military wife
@CassandraRules/X

Wife Of Active Duty U.S. Military Member Goes Viral For Her Furious Reaction To Trump's Attacks On Iran

@kendallybrown, a TikTok user and military wife, went viral after she published a TikTok video in which she let President Donald Trump's supporters know how much she "hates" them after Trump ordered an attack on various sites in Iran on Saturday morning.

Trump said that the U.S. military was "knocking the crap out of Iran" but the "big wave" of attacks is still yet to come, and has not ruled out putting boots on the ground, saying the war is progressing "way ahead of schedule."

Keep ReadingShow less
Ilhan Omar; Nancy Mace
Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images; Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images

Ilhan Omar Claps Back Hard After Nancy Mace Tries To Insult Her With Bizarre Post Following Iran Attack

Minnesota Democratic Representative Ilhan Omar clapped back at South Carolina Republican Representative Nancy Mace after Mace attempted to insult her and Michigan Democratic Representative Rashida Tlaib after President Donald Trump ordered an attack on various sites in Iran on Saturday morning that killed Iranian leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and other top officials.

Omar and Tlaib were the first two Muslim women elected to Congress. Both have faced repeated attacks from members of the Republican Party tied to their religion, including being labeled part of the so-called “Jihad Squad,” a term suggesting they are sympathetic to extremism or seek to impose Islamist rule in the United States.

Keep ReadingShow less
Christian Bale
Gareth Cattermole/Getty Images

Christian Bale Explains Why Fans Are Always Disappointed When They Meet Him—And His Candor Is Refreshing

We've all heard the old saying, "You should never meet your heroes," and Christian Bale most certainly agrees.

The Dark Knight actor offered very candid advice to his fans during an interview with Entertainment Tonight, explaining that the last thing any of them should do is try to meet him in real life, because he'll only disappoint them in return.

Keep ReadingShow less
Screenshot of Pete Hegseth
MS Now

Pete Hegseth Ripped After Trying To Claim That The U.S. 'Didn't Start This War' With Iran

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth was criticized after he claimed that the U.S. "didn't start this war" with Iran—just days after the Trump administration authorized an attack on various sites in Iran with the joint efforts of Israel over the weekend.

The war against Iran is already spreading beyond its initial battlefield. Iranian reprisals have struck Gulf states hosting U.S. bases—including Qatar, the United Arab Emirates, Kuwait and Saudi Arabia—while Hezbollah has entered the fight, firing rockets into Israel and ending a month-long ceasefire.

Keep ReadingShow less
Connor Storrie stands center stage on Saturday Night Live alongside U.S. Olympic gold medalists Quinn Hughes (far left), Hilary Knight (left), Megan Keller (right), and Jack Hughes (far right) during his opening monologue in Studio 8H.
Saturday Night Live/YouTube

'SNL' Turns Trump Diss About U.S. Women's Olympic Hockey Team On Its Head With Sweet Monologue Moment

Connor Storrie’s debut Saturday Night Live monologue had just about everything: jokes, a childhood throwback, a few perfectly placed Heated Rivalry innuendos, and—because this is apparently the most athletic season in Studio 8H history—both the gold-winning players from the U.S. men’s and women’s Olympic hockey teams.

The appearance came just days after controversy over invitations to the White House and President Donald Trump’s State of the Union address, giving the night an edge that felt bigger than a typical celebrity-cameo parade.

Keep ReadingShow less