Flavor, flavor everywhere

Science has shown that your sense of smell is weakest around dawn, but there are certain morning aromas that rarely fail to register: The fruity, nutty notes of just-brewed coffee. The sugary scent of bread becoming toast. The breakfast perfume of sizzling bacon, with its strong strains of cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg, and dried cranberries.

At least, those are the smells sent up by mulled cranberry bacon, a 2023 holiday hit for some pork producers, along with cider bacon, gingerbread bacon, pumpkin spice candied bacon, and apple pie bacon.