
Flavour Talks
Welcome to the Flavour Talks podcast, where our hosts speak to people for whom the chemical senses — smell and taste — are at the heart of their professional lives.
Latest episodes

Mar 23, 2025 • 1h 3min
Flavour Talk with Cyndie Lipka
The first guest of the fourth season of our podcast is Cyndie Lipka, a principal flavorist at Bell Flavors and Fragrances. Ms. Lipka has nearly three decades of experience in the flavor industry, with a focus on developing and duplicating elegantly layered flavors for a variety of markets, including the sweet and dairy industries. She began her career at The Hershey Company and has worked for Wm. Wrigley Jr. Co., Sethness Greenleaf Chicago (later Synergy Flavors), Bell Flavors and Fragrances, Prinova USA and again for Bell Flavors & Fragrances.She is also a past president and chairman of the board for the Society of Flavor Chemists and the Chemical Sources Association. In 2017, Ms. Lipka received the Flavoristof the Year Award from the WFFC, and in 2014, she received the O.F. Stambaugh Chemistry Alumni Award from Elizabethtown College, which is given to alumni inrecognition of outstanding professional contributions in chemistry or medicine.Ms. Lipka is also an active monthly contributor and moderator for Perfumer & Flavorist magazine's "The Flavor Report" section and is a member of the P&F+ Advisory Board.Host: Trevor Groome, Ján Peťka, Music: Aidan Kirkwood, Editing: Maria Palassarou, Publishing: Ján Peťka

Oct 19, 2024 • 1h 7min
Flavour Talk with Garmt Dijksterhuis
We wrap up Season 3 of the Flavour Talks podcast with Garmt Dijksterhuis, a renowned researcher in sensory science and experimental psychology. Garmt has over 30 years of experience in academia, research institutes, and the food industry. He has written or co-authored 150 publications in sensory and consumer science, statistics, and psychology. Garmt Dijksterhuis is a founding member of the Sensometric society and a member of the editorial board of several journals in the area of eating and food perception. He has taught courses in food perception and sensory science, and has been invited to speak at various scientific conferences and media interviews. Garmt is teaching at the Faculty of Psychology and Neuroscience of Maastricht University in the Netherlands.
Host: Trevor Groome, Music: Aidan Kirkwood, Editing: Maria Palassarou, Publishing: Ján Peťka

Sep 27, 2024 • 1h 31min
Flavour Talk with Christophe Laudamiel
Welcome to this episode of our podcast, recorded on World Arts Day, featuring the visionary perfumer Christophe Laudamiel. Known for his innovative approach to fragrance design, Christophe has created scents for some of the world's leading brands and has a reputation for pushing the boundaries of olfactory artistry. In this inspiring conversation, he shares his insights on the importance of forging your own path in the creative world of flavours and fragrances. He encourages listeners to embrace their individuality and resist the limitations imposed by external influences. Join us as we dive into the power of self-expression and chat about how to stay true to ourselves on our creative journeys.
(02:45) How Christophe became a perfumer?
(15:30) Memorable innovation
(21:25) Flavours and society’s acceptance
(26:15) What keeps the perfumer up at night
(32:00) Enhancing flavours from a perfumer’s perspective
(37:45) Christophe and the work at Osmo
(42:30) Collaboration with chefs and bartenders
(46:16) The First Synthetic Molecule
(51:40) Industry Constraints
(53:05) Realism in Perfumery and flavours
(55:00) Smelling “Spacewood”
(1:00:10) Perfumers and flavourists – who are seen as artists?
(1:06:40) Inspiration in unlikely places
(1:17:05) How life’s challenges inspire creativity?
(1:24:00) A Message to the Next Generation
Host: Aidan Kirkwood, Michel Aubanel, Seán Ryan, Music: Aidan Kirkwood, Editing: Britta Nobis, Publishing: Ján Peťka

Sep 10, 2024 • 1h 37min
Flavour Talk with Andy Taylor
The world of flavours is relatively small, so there are just few iconic personalities. One of them is undoubtedly Andy Taylor. After 32 successful years at the University of Nottingham, where he pioneered the study of flavour release from food, he changed career direction in 2010 to found a spin-out company, Flavometrix. He then joined Mars Petcare where he worked for 6 years. Andy currently works with a number of companies to help develop flavour research strategies and to mentor younger researchers in planning and managing their research projects. His association with the University of Nottingham continues through his role as Emeritus Professor, where he works on an ad hoc basis to support and develop younger researchers and is one of the key people organising the key flavour research event: Weurman Symposium.
Host: Trevor Groome, Music: Aidan Kirkwood, Editing: Mark Millward, Publishing: Ján Peťka
© 2024 British Society of Flavourists

Aug 18, 2024 • 32min
Flavour Talk with Paola Totaro
Paola Totaro is an award-winning journalist, editor and author covering global issues including politics, health, social policy, indigenous rights, arts and culture. She has written for major publications and is passionate about storytelling, engaging diverse audiences and mentoring young journalists. When award-winning reporter Paola Totaro lost her sense of smell to Covid in March 2020, her world changed and dulled in an instant. Her latest book, On the Scent, is a memoir/scientific detective story that explores the mysterious sense of smell and its impact on emotional wellbeing, relationships and interpretation. It explores the experiences of patients and scientists and highlights its potential as a health indicator.
Host: Trevor Groome and Seán Ryan, Music: Aidan Kirkwood, Editing: Maria Palassarou, Publishing: Ján Peťka
© 2024 British Society of Flavourists

Jul 18, 2024 • 1h 4min
Flavour Talk with Thomas Hummel
Professor Thomas Hummel is a renowned expert in the field of smell and taste. He supervises work area and outpatient clinic "Smell and Taste" at the Department of Otorhinolaryngology at the TU Dresden and heads the interdisciplinary centre "Smell and Taste", where he studies the physiology and pathophysiology of smell and taste. His work includes the diagnosis and treatment of olfactory and gustatory disorders.
Host: Trevor Groome and Michel Aubanel, Music: Aidan Kirkwood, Editing: Maria Palassarou, Publishing: Ján Peťka
© 2024 British Society of Flavourists

Jun 22, 2024 • 1h 40min
Flavour Talk with Carlo Bicchi
Carlo Bicchi, Full Professor of Phytochemistry at the Faculty of Pharmacy of the University of Turin, has been involved in the development of analytical technologies for biologically active secondary metabolites in plant matrices and in aroma profiling and fingerprinting of industrial food crops. With over 350 publications in international journals, his research interests include sample preparation, gas chromatography, enantioselective GC, high pressure liquid chromatography, supercritical fluid extraction and chromatography, chemometric methods, fingerprinting and profiling. Carlo Bicchi has been invited to serve on international PhD and postdoctoral juries and has collaborated with global companies in the food sector. He has been an effective member of the Botanicals Compendium Working Group for the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA).
Host: Trevor Groome and Andrea Albertino, Music: Aidan Kirkwood, Editing: Mark Millward, Publishing: Ján Peťka
© 2024 British Society of Flavourists

May 30, 2024 • 1h 36min
Flavour Talk with Saskia van Ruth
Listen to a new episode of the Flavour Talks podcast with Saskia van Ruth, Professor of Food Supply Chain Integrity at University College Dublin. With a PhD in food chemistry, she has extensive experience in flavour science and food authenticity, having worked in a variety of roles at institutions including Queen's University Belfast, University College Cork and Wageningen University & Research.
Host: Trevor Groome and Séan Ryan, Music: Aidan Kirkwood, Editing: Britta Nobis, Publishing: Ján Peťka
© 2024 British Society of Flavourists

May 3, 2024 • 1h 13min
Flavour Talk with Barry Smith, Part 2
Technical problems caused that the interview with Professor Barry Smith was left unfinished. That's why we bring you the sequel. Enjoy!
Host: Trevor Groome, Music: Aidan Kirkwood, Editing: Maria Palassarou, Publishing: Ján Peťka
© 2024 British Society of Flavourists

Apr 25, 2024 • 1h 7min
Flavour Talk with Barry Smith, Part 1
In this episode we talk to Barry C. Smith, Director of the Institute of Philosophy at the School of Advanced Study, University of London. A philosopher of language and mind and founding director of the Centre for the Study of the Senses, his current research is on the multisensory nature of perceptual experience, focusing on taste, smell and flavour. He has written both theoretical and experimental papers and collaborated with chefs and artists. Barry is also a well-known broadcaster and wine columnist. For technical reasons, this recording has been split into two parts.
Host: Trevor Groome, Music: Aidan Kirkwood, Editing: Maria Palassarou, Publishing: Ján Peťka© 2024 British Society of Flavourists
Remember Everything You Learn from Podcasts
Save insights instantly, chat with episodes, and build lasting knowledge - all powered by AI.