The absolute worst fake flavour in the world is cherry. Anything artificially flavoured red, that is supposed to mimic cherries is disgusting. A real cherry and a candy flavoured cherry taste nothing alike. I love cherries, hate the knock offs.
I often wonder where the flavour comes from and why it is so off.
It's often created using chemicals like esters and benzaldehyde, which according to multiple sources on the world wide web, have a similar flavour profile to real cherries. I would beg to differ.
Benzaldehyde occurs naturally in cherries, almonds, and other fruit.
However, a deeper dive into the Internet shows that because of its tenacity, benzaldehyde is used in pharmaceutical products to mask off-notes, cough drops, and syrup, which causes people to associate it as medicinal.
So maybe that is my answer. I don’t associate the fake flavour with cherries, but rather medicine. I have one very vivid memory of being sick and my mom sitting all of my siblings on the counter, in one line and forcing each one of us to take some sort of red cough syrup or something and it tasting so awful. I also remember her trying to coax us into taking it but saying it tastes like cherries.
I still won’t buy my children cherry flavoured acetaminophen.
However, I will buy them real cherries. I am so exciting that cherry season is creeping up. Let’s hope for a good growing season.
Weather events over the past couple of years have significantly impeded the cherry harvest. In 2021, most of the province was hit by a ‘heat dome’ with temperatures in orchards reaching upwards of 47 degrees Celsius in Okanagan, scorching the crops. Then in 2024, there was a late season cold snap that affected the trees.
It can’t be easy to be a cherry farmer but I am so thankful for those that do that.
