人們經常抱怨飛機餐難吃，飛機上的咖啡也不好喝，其實是因為在飛機上人們的味覺和嗅覺都會暫時“失靈”。針對這一痛點，阿拉斯加航空公司推出了一種新咖啡，據稱在飛機上“更好喝”。

Drinking bad coffee is just one of the many downsides of flying. Alaska Airlines thinks it has a solution.

咖啡難喝只是乘坐飛機的眾多痛點之一。關于這一點，阿拉斯加航空公司認為自己找到了解決辦法。

Alaska has created a custom blend with Portland-based roaster Stumptown to make a coffee that’s immune from the altitude-changing effects that airborne-served coffee typically creates, including tasting bitter and weak.

阿拉斯加航空公司與總部在美國波特蘭市的咖啡品牌“樹墩城”合作推出了一種定制混合咖啡，這種咖啡不受海拔變化的影響。在飛機上沖泡出的咖啡通常都會受高海拔的影響變得苦澀，咖啡味也會變淡。

The custom coffee, a first for a major airline, will exclusively be served on every Alaska flight by December 1.

這是大型航空公司首次推出這種定制咖啡，從12月1日起將會在阿拉斯加航空公司的每個航班上專門供應。

Taste and smell are inextricably combined and people’s sense of smell is significantly altered in the sky. Food and drinks taste different because pressurized cabins lower blood oxygen levels, which reduces the ability of olfactory receptors (i.e. the ability to smell). The extremely dry air of the cabin, with its humidity levels lower than that of the Sahara Desert, also affects the nose.

口感和氣味之間有一種密不可分的聯系，人們的嗅覺在高空中會發生很大改變。由于密封機艙會降低血氧水平，從而降低嗅覺能力，這會讓食物和飲料的味道變得不同。機艙內的空氣極度干燥，濕度水平比撒哈拉沙漠還要低，這也會影響嗅覺。

To combat those effects, Alaska turned to Stumptown’s Holler Mountain, a medium-dark blend, for the base, then infused it with punchier notes that taste like marshmallows, browned butter and toffee as well as a “delicate hint” of citrus oils and cherry essence. As a result, the coffee’s notes have a more “complex” taste when consumed in the air.

為了對抗這些影響，阿拉斯加航空公司選擇用樹墩城的中深度烘培咖啡豆Holler Mountain打底，加入吃起來像棉花糖、焦黃油和太妃糖的、味道更強烈的咖啡豆，以及帶有柑橘油和櫻桃香精的清香的淺烘咖啡豆。這樣加工而成的咖啡在高空中飲用時有一種更為“復雜”的口感。

The coffee has been in development for a year, with the airline telling CNN that 20 different versions were tested, including during flights and with blind surveys. Alaska even taste-tested the blend with creamer and Biscoff cookies to “ensure the best combination.”

阿拉斯加航空公司告訴美國有線電視網，這款咖啡的開發持續了一年，他們對20種不同版本進行了測試，包括在飛行途中的測評和不記名調查。該航空公司甚至將這種混合咖啡與奶精和比斯考夫餅干一起試味，來“確定最佳組合”。

However, the freshly brewed partnership with Stumptown means that Alaska is ending its decade-long partnership with fellow Seattle-based coffee company, Starbucks. Alaska said it is “grateful to our friends at Starbucks and proud to have served their coffee on board our flights for years.”

不過，阿拉斯加航空公司與樹墩城咖啡的新合作關系意味著阿拉斯加航空結束了與總部在美國西雅圖的星巴克咖啡長達十年的合作。阿拉斯加航空公司表示：“感恩星巴克的朋友們，也為多年來在我們的航班上供應星巴克咖啡而感到自豪。”

英文來源：美國有線電視新聞網

翻譯&編輯：丹妮