Cheese in Surround Sound, Tasty!

Joe on 2. April 2019 reading time: < 1 MIN

A recent Swiss study proves that Emmental cheese that has been exposed to Hip-Hop music during the fermentation process tastes better than cheese that was exposed to other genres of music or to no music at all. ??

It’s April 2nd, this is NOT an April Fool’s prank, let us explain below…

#ThePowerOfMusic

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The experiment was conducted by students of the University of Arts Bern and veterinarian and cheesemaker Beate Wampfler who came up with the idea. The project was titled “Cheese in Surround Sound – a culinary art experiment”.

Eight wheels of Swiss Emmental cheese were individually exposed to different types of music or frequencies for 8 months, 24 hours a day, during the fermentation process. The cheese wheels were placed in wooden crates and a speaker was attached to the bottom of each one where the sound waves pulsated through the cheese. The bacterial cultures in cheese are alive and therefore react to music and to certain frequencies. Who would’ve thought that the power of music also affected our food (or our bacteria, rather)!

When it came time to taste the cheeses, a panel of scientists and culinary experts unanimously agreed that there were differences in taste. The cheese that was exposed to hip-hop music (A Tribe Called Quest, to be specific) had the most unique flavour profile: fruity and distinct from the other samples.

Sounds crazy right? Well, the Swiss take their cheeses very seriously. Watch these two videos for more details… ?

Before the taste test:

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After the taste test:

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What do you think about all this cheese business? Was this experiment a complete waste of time? Would you pay more for a cheese that was exposed to hip hop music? Is this article simply too cheesy for your liking? Leave us a comment!

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Joe has been singing since he can remember and started playing guitar when he was 10. He's been using it as a songwriting tool ever since. He is passionate about melody and harmony and admires musicians who create these in unique ways. Check out his alternative / indie projects Best of Feelings and Zef Raček.

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