Microsoft : Comvita unlocks the taste of honey with the help of augmented reality

It's another busy day at Expo 2020 in the bustling Middle Eastern metropolis of Dubai. Many in the crowd are enjoying the warm Arabian winter weather. But one group of visitors can't wait to get out of the sunshine. They want to enter a dark enchanted forest that's almost half a world away and explore it, virtually.

They've come to the Expo's New Zealand pavilion for an augmented reality show that promises to set a new standard in consumer food marketing and education.

The experience plays upon their senses of sight and sound to help them identify and understand the complexity of tastes of Mānuka, a type of pure native forest honey that is celebrated around the globe for its health benefits, organic goodness and sustainable origins.

New Zealand company and a global leader in Mānuka honey, Comvita has come to Dubai to win over new customers.

The magic begins

The experience starts like this. Each audience member sits in front of a tray with two samples of honey, a tasting spoon and a palate-cleansing glass of sparkling water.

They each put on a HoloLens 2 headset as the lights go down and the magic begins.

Suddenly, a life-size beehive hanging from a native New Zealand punga tree appears from out of the darkness. A 3D virtual beekeeper arrives and guides them through a lush primeval setting.

A swarm of bees buzzes around the room, searching for indigenous Mānuka shrubs with tiny delicate pink and white flowers full of nectar.

Now it's time to start tasting. The natural accents of each honey's taste profile float around the guests to help them identify the flavors they can sense - apricot, toffee, marshmallow and others.

To add a little extra wonder, HoloLens makes the tasting spoon leave a trace of sparkles in the air when it's dipped into a honey pot - just like a magic wand.

The Comvita HoloLens show was put together by New Zealand design agency, Blur the Lines.

Emotional experience

Its founder and creative director, Danielle Barclay says the agency has created "an emotional experience" that connects a participant's mind with their taste buds.

Two years ago, Comvita and Blur the Lines built a multi-sensory honey-tasting center, called a "Wellness Lab," in New Zealand's most populous city, Auckland.

"That space was designed to emulate the purity of the product - all white textures to allow the honey to shine, with an undulating acoustic ceiling. We had to incorporate three projectors, surround sound speakers, radiant heaters, sprinklers, air-conditioning and lighting," Barclay says.

This immersive experience became a hit with tourists and locals. But when Comvita decided to go on the road to Dubai, the team opted for a virtual approach using HoloLens.