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Any connoisseur of specialty food or drink will know the risks involved in picking the wrong product for your own palate — it is a costly and unpleasant mistake. There are now apps that allow users to profile indie alcohol before they buy. Maille, purveyors of French mustard for centuries, are going a step further and embracing smart technology to help users choose their favorite mustard.

In their showroom in Piccadilly, Maille teamed up with Hirsch and Mann and creative agency Mr. President to develop the Discovery Spoon tasting experience. Consumers were invited to try various mustard flavours, using the spoon to tap on sensors placed in front of the mustards that they enjoyed most. The Discovery Spoons remember where they were tapped, saving the various data to build up a unique flavor profile for the user. The information is then downloaded from the spoon, after which consumers are sent emails with Maille mustard-based recipes tailored to their particular palate. Consumers spend time physically tasting mustards, receiving a physical experience that Maille can then use to promote its mustard to individuals based entirely on their own preferences.

As consumers’ palates grow more discerning, the ability to tailor products to individual tastes will become an important feature of the specialty food and beverage industry. Could restaurants develop menus around individual taste preferences?