How does our sense of taste work?

Taste is perceived in the buccal cavity, mainly on the tongue, which is covered with thousands of taste buds, each containing clusters of taste receptor cells.

The molecules that create taste, known as the sapid molecules, enter into contact with our taste receptors.
This excites the cells (we call this stimulation) so they emit an electrical signal which the taste nerves then transmit to the brain.

The importance of taste

Over the course of evolution, our sense of taste has enabled us to protect ourselves from toxic products. Many toxic substances taste bitter, so we reject them.

The way we perceive taste depends mainly on our personal experiences and varies a great deal from one person to another.
Your taste buds are replaced every 10 days. This is why, if you burn your tongue, it gets better fairly quickly.