Bitter flavor is one of the 5 flavors detected by the tastebuds on our tongue. This marvelous flavor stimulates digestive juices, helping us to better digest and absorb our food, while also helping to increase our appetite before a meal. Bitter helps to move the liver, which is the cornerstone of detoxification in the body, also making it particularly useful in the digestion of fats and rich foods. If we observe the botanical flavor cycles of the seasons, we observe that the first greens to grow in the spring, after the long winter, always embody the flavor bitter. This flavor is akin to the Wood element in Chinese medicine, spring, liver, movement. Some common and most excellent bitter herbs are dandelion, arugula, gentian, yarrow, coffee to name only a few.