Why Does Cold Water Taste Better?

Whether you’ve just finished a heavy session in the gym or simply taken a break from working in the yard on a hot summer’s day, nothing quite hits the spot like a glass of cold water. It’s thirst-quenching, rehydrates the body, and most importantly, it tastes good.

And yet, if someone were to leave that same glass of water out in the sun for an hour, it suddenly becomes quite unappealing. If you were to taste it, you’d think it tasted much worse than a cold glass of water. And yet, it’s the same water.

You might wonder how on earth that’s possible, and trust me, you wouldn’t be the only one. Why cold water tastes so much better than warm water is one of the great mysteries of life, and we’re here to help solve it. Join us as we find out why cold water tastes the best!

What Is Taste?

Taste, otherwise known as the gustatory system, is one of our five senses. But how exactly does our sense of taste work?

To put it simply, taste is the perception of the chemical reactions that happen when food or drink comes into contact with the taste receptor cells found in the taste buds. As we will all know from school, thousands of taste buds are located on the tongue. The reactions that happen in the taste buds send stimuli to the brain, which then interprets these stimuli as ‘taste’. There are four primary tastes – sweet, sour, salty, and bitter – each of which has its own specialized taste receptor cells.

Taste is one of the most subjective senses. We all experience it slightly differently, and not everybody enjoys the same flavors. Some people have genes that alter their sense of taste. For example, there are ‘supertasters’ with a heightened sense of taste due to an abnormally large number of taste receptors. Other people have inherited genetic traits that make certain foods taste awful.

So, while we all have a sense of taste that functions the same way, our brains perceive tastes differently.

 What Does Water Taste Like?

Taste, otherwise known as the gustatory system, is one of our five senses. But how exactly does our sense of taste work?

To put it simply, taste is the perception of the chemical reactions that happen when food or drink comes into contact with the taste receptor cells found in the taste buds.

As we will all know from school, thousands of taste buds are located on the tongue. The reactions that happen in the taste buds send stimuli to the brain, which then interprets these stimuli as ‘taste’. There are four primary tastes – sweet, sour, salty, and bitter – each of which has its own specialized taste receptor cells.

Taste is one of the most subjective senses. We all experience it slightly differently, and not everybody enjoys the same flavors. Some people have genes that alter their sense of taste.

For example, there are ‘supertasters’ with a heightened sense of taste due to an abnormally large number of taste receptors. Other people have inherited genetic traits that make certain foods taste awful.

So, while we all have a sense of taste that functions the same way, our brains perceive tastes differently.

What Does Water Taste Like?

There are a lot of people who think that water doesn’t have a taste simply because it doesn’t have a strong taste. Of course, water has a taste! The taste of water can vary quite a lot, depending on where it’s come from, how it’s been treated, and other factors.

A lot of the taste in water comes from the minerals present in it, and how concentrated these minerals are. For, example, ‘hard’ water, rich in minerals like calcium and magnesium, has a stronger taste than ‘soft’ water. Soft water has lower levels of these minerals and often has higher sodium content, so will naturally taste different.

The pH of water can also affect its taste. Even distilled water, which is meant to be completely pure, has a slight taste. Although the water itself might be pure, impurities in the glass and your mouth will mix with the water to create a taste.

Why Does Cold Water Taste Better?

So we’ve looked briefly at how taste works and what water tastes of, but we haven’t answered the question. So, let’s get on with it! Here are some of the reasons why water tastes so much better cold.

Temperature Affects Taste

That’s right, temperature affects taste. In essence, cooler temperatures dull the sensitivity of your taste buds. So, counterintuitively, your ice-cold glass of water tastes better than a warm one simply because it tastes less.

When a glass of water is warm, any impurities in it that may make it taste sweeter or more acidic, for example, are experienced more intensely, which may give it a less pleasant taste.

Cold water, on the other hand, has a crisper, more balanced flavor because you don’t taste the flavors in the water as strongly.

Evolution

Yes, some scientists believe that our preference for cold water is a survival adaptation. Think about it – you’re alive 10,000 years ago and you’ve worked up a bit of a thirst.

What are you going to drink from; the stagnant puddle of water that has been warming in the sun, or the cool water from the mountain stream? The stream is the sensible choice.

The warm water from the puddle is more likely to be full of dangerous bacteria and parasites. As a result, humans over the millennia have instinctively grown to associate cooler water with safer water, and warm water with unhealthy bacteria.

Cold Water Is More Thirst-Quenching

Scientists have done studies that suggest that cold water is just more ‘thirst-quenching’ than warm or room temperature water.

When the participants in the studies were asked which glass of water left them feeling the most hydrated, cold water was the winner.

The theory is that the colder the glass of water is, the stronger the signals to the brain that you are re-hydrating. As a result, the glass of water is more satisfying, and your thirst is quenched more quickly.

Much like food that tastes better when you are hungry, water tastes better when you are thirsty, especially when it quenches your thirst quickly.

Cold Water Helps To Regulate Body Temperature

Ok, so this isn’t strictly to do with taste, but it does play a part! When you’ve been working out on a warm day and have worked up a sweat, a cold glass of water helps to cool you down and regulate your body temperature.

Naturally, this will make you feel refreshed and just generally better, which is sure to make the glass of water taste better. After all, if there’s one thing we’ve learned about taste, it’s that a large part of it is psychological.

Final Thoughts

Unlike what some people claim, water certainly does have a taste, and it certainly tastes better when cold. There are several reasons why cold water tastes better. Cold water dulls our taste buds, making the impurities in water taste less intensely.

Scientists also believe we have evolved to instinctively prefer cooler water. Cold water also helps to regulate your overall body temperature and is believed to be more thirst-quenching because it sends stronger signals to the brain.

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Mandy Anderson

Hi, my name is Mandy Anderson and I think that more people should be informed about their water quality!

There is so much to consider about the water that you’re consuming, such as how it’s treated, what chemicals are used within it, and what these are doing to the environment.

We need to protect our local environments and wildlife, so I urge you to take a look through my website and learn about how your water quality is affecting you and your surroundings.

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