German for Beginners: Describing How Food Tastes (Sweet, Salty, Sour, Bitter, Spicy)
Learn to say 'This is sweet' and 'It tastes salty' in German, describing what food is like rather than whether you like it.
By MarcusFood & cafés · Yapr Learn
In German, you can describe the taste of food in two simple ways. Use 'Das ist ...' (This is ...) with an adjective, or 'Es schmeckt ...' (It tastes ...) with an adjective. These sentences describe the food itself, not your personal opinion. To say you like something, you use a different verb: 'schmecken' with a dative pronoun, as in 'Es schmeckt mir' (I like it, literally 'it tastes to me'). This lesson keeps the focus on describing taste qualities: süß, salzig, sauer, bitter and scharf.
By the end, you can…
- name the five basic taste qualities in German.
- say 'This is sweet' and 'It tastes sour' using 'Das ist ...' and 'Es schmeckt ...'.
- tell the difference between describing food and saying that I like it.
Listen once. Try it slowly. Then say it without looking.
Checking available voices…
Das ist süß.
This is sweet.
das ist zees
Use 'Das ist ...' to describe a food item directly. 'süß' means sweet and has an umlaut: ü.
Es schmeckt salzig.
It tastes salty.
es shmekt ZAHL-tsikh
'Es schmeckt ...' describes the taste of something already mentioned. 'salzig' comes from 'Salz' (salt).
Die Zitrone ist sauer.
The lemon is sour.
dee tsi-TROH-nuh ist ZOW-er
'sauer' means sour. 'Die Zitrone' is feminine, so the article is 'die'.
Der Kaffee schmeckt bitter.
The coffee tastes bitter.
dair KAH-fay shmekt BIT-ter
'Der Kaffee' is masculine. 'bitter' stays the same in this predicative position.
Das Curry ist scharf.
The curry is spicy.
das KUR-ee ist sharf
'scharf' means spicy or hot. It can also mean 'sharp', so context matters.
Pronunciation guides are approximate. Slow playback keeps the original pitch.
Make it make sense
Useful pattern
The two core patterns are 'Das ist + adjective' and 'Es schmeckt + adjective'. Examples: 'Das ist süß.' (This is sweet.) 'Es schmeckt salzig.' (It tastes salty.) 'Die Suppe ist scharf.' (The soup is spicy.) After 'ist' and 'schmeckt', the adjective does not take an ending: 'Der Kuchen ist süß', not 'süßer'. This makes these sentences easy to build.
When to use it
Use 'Das ist ...' when you point to or name a food: 'Das ist bitter.' Use 'Es schmeckt ...' when the food is already known from context: 'Es schmeckt sauer.' To talk about your own liking, change the pattern: 'Es schmeckt mir' means 'I like it' (literally 'it tastes to me'). 'Mir' is a dative pronoun. So 'Das ist süß' describes the cake; 'Es schmeckt mir' says you enjoy it. Keep these two ideas separate.
Listen to each line, then take one part and reply out loud.
Wie schmeckt die Suppe?
How does the soup taste?vee shmekt dee ZUP-uhSie ist salzig. Und ein bisschen scharf.
It is salty. And a little spicy.zee ist ZAHL-tsikh. unt ine BIS-shens sharfUnd der Kuchen? Ist er süß?
And the cake? Is it sweet?unt dair KOO-khen? ist air zeesJa, sehr süß. Aber die Zitrone ist sauer.
Yes, very sweet. But the lemon is sour.yah, zair zees. AH-ber dee tsi-TROH-nuh ist ZOW-erA little context goes a long way
In German-speaking countries, 'scharf' is the usual word for spicy food, while 'pikant' describes something mildly spicy or savory. In Austria and southern Germany, 'sauer' is standard for sour, and 'süß' is used everywhere. When you say 'Es schmeckt mir', you are expressing personal liking; without 'mir', the sentence simply describes taste. This distinction is important in restaurants and at the table.
One thing to watch for
Using 'Es schmeckt mir süß' to mean 'It tastes sweet to me'.
Try this instead: Say 'Es schmeckt süß' for taste. Add 'mir' only to express liking: 'Es schmeckt mir' means 'I like it'. If you want both, use two sentences: 'Es ist süß. Es schmeckt mir.'
Your turn
Try answering out loud before checking a possible answer.
1How do you say 'The lemon is sour' in German?
Show a sample answer
Die Zitrone ist sauer.
'Die Zitrone' is feminine, so it takes 'die'. 'sauer' is the adjective for sour and stays unchanged after 'ist'.
2Translate: 'It tastes bitter.'
Show a sample answer
Es schmeckt bitter.
Use 'Es schmeckt' plus the adjective 'bitter'. No ending is added after 'schmeckt'.
3What is the difference between 'Das ist scharf' and 'Es schmeckt mir'?
Show a sample answer
'Das ist scharf' describes the food as spicy. 'Es schmeckt mir' means 'I like it'.
The first sentence describes an inherent quality. The second uses the dative pronoun 'mir' to express personal liking. Both can be true at the same time, but they are different statements.
Use 'Das ist ...' or 'Es schmeckt ...' plus süß, salzig, sauer, bitter or scharf to describe food. Add 'mir' only when you want to say you like it.
Progress is saved on this browser.
Practice real time conversations on Yapr for faster learning.
Put today’s German into a conversation with an AI tutor. Speak, make mistakes, and try again.
Practice on Yapr