Bases Taste Bitter

• Bases are less common in foods than acids because of their bitter taste.
• Our aversion to the taste of bases is probably an adaptation to protect us against alkaloids, organic bases found in plants.
• Alkaloids are often poisonous—the active component of hemlock, for example, is the alkaloid coniine—and their bitter taste warns us against eating them.
• Some foods contain small amounts of base.
• Coffee is acidic overall, but bases present in coffee—such as caffeine—impart a bitter flavor.