Coffee vs. Tea: Why We Prefer One Over the Other

Photo by Joanna Kosinska on Unsplash

Between coffee and tea, which do you prefer? According to an Australian study published in the Nature journal, one of the factors might be genetics.

The study was done on a very big sample. Its aim was to show that perceptions of bitterness affect tea or coffee consumption, said Daniel Liang-Dar Hwang of the University of Brisbane, co-author of the study. The study explains that people who are more sensitive to the bitter taste of coffee are paradoxically the ones who drink it most.

“Since coffee drinkers were genetically less sensitive to bitterness than tea drinkers, they were less likely to hate other bitter-tasting foods, such as green vegetables,” Hwang said.