A pickle.  Lemon.  Vinegar.  That’s what we think of when we think of sour.  Your mouth just watered, didn’t it? When we taste sour, our mouth signals the brain to pay attention! Sour is also a conversation about preservation.  Most of the ways we preserve food involve acids, creating that pickle, sauerkraut, sourdough, using those acids to transform and preserve (even enhance) the value from the ingredient.  

We believe that connecting with others over taste creates strong communities, and we foster that with intention in our offerings, taking joy in the success it creates. Taking inspiration from chefs, sommeliers, artists, fragrance makers, jewelers, musicians, and more- we’ve designed a tasting method that redefines our senses to go beyond the usual five to capture what it means to ‘make sense of sensations’ in our very complex world.

When you’re in a restaurant, can you enjoy your meal if the ambient noise is loud or dissonant? In an era of Insta-worthy plating, do you need to be visually enticed before you take a bite? If the answer is yes, you are already engaged in ‘tasting with all the senses.’ Two or more of your senses have enhanced your ability to taste.

We’ve embraced “Tasting with All the Senses” as our methodology, intentionally connecting and sequencing our senses as a tasting experience. Sight, sound, smell, taste, touch, and time are the senses we explore in our tasting workshops with clients, a journey that is not only fun and delicious but also grows collaboration skills by enhancing discernment abilities.

We have moved! A major milestone for any business, we are celebrating our progress in new digs at the Labour Temple, a historic building in the heart of Belltown that opened in 1948 as a home for the unions that helped grow Seattle to what it is today. Beautifully and respectfully redone and opened in 2022, it’s now a welcoming space for businesses like ours and the client teams we welcome. We are so grateful to Seattle Restored for the learning that our Pioneer Square storefront enabled. In our new location, we have access to so many different ways to host friends and teams in an elegant location that holds respect and dignity for Seattle history.

Highlighting Origins: The Language of Scent and Flavor held on May 9, was a sensory experience carnival! Our primary goal for the evening was to close the distance between “expert” and participant- to remove the perceived barriers between the professional taster or “nose” and the layperson through first-hand experience on a level playing field. We invited our frequent collaborators The NA Sommelier and Filigree & Shadow to help us tell a sensory story through fragrance, tea, beverage, and chocolate to demystify the tasting experience and turn participants into makers, blenders, and chocolatiers for the night.

A Matter of Taste workshops always spark new ideas and conversations, and our Highlighting Origins: Insight Chocolate tasting event on March 26 deliciously centered chocolate sourcing, growing, and making; with a lively conversation on how we can engage with chocolate and cocoa in ethical and responsible ways.  Our speakers reinforced that cacao is a critical part of regenerative farming and forestry. Tasting sample after sample, participants left the evening with a new appreciation for the richness of the chocolate conversation (and their own set of tasting bars to enjoy with friends!

A Matter of Taste experiences have four courses to go from cold start to ready to fly with new skills, insight and inspiration. Step by step, we go from mindful orientation, guided learning, discovery by doing, and fostering action, whether that’s achieving team successes or embracing a love of excellent chocolate!