A bottle of your finest ... and some Hendrix
Listening to music while drinking can alter the taste of wine, scientists have claimed.Boffins from Edinburgh's Heriot-Watt University say that in tests the type of music played controled what tastes were experienced.
The researchers concluded that to best experience a cabernet sauvignon it should be drunk while listening to Jimi Hendrix. Tchaikovsky's The Nutcracker led to wines being regarded as subtle and refined.
Professor Adrian North, head of the university's department of applied psychology, said that if the music was loud and dense so the wine was deemed more powerful and heavy by the 250 strong sample.
The effect was more pronounced with red wine than white and Prof North thinks this could be because people might be less certain about judging red wine, as they were less sure how to describe its complex flavours.
Prof North told the BBC: "It is widely acknowledged within the scientific community that music affects behaviour. However, this is the first time it has been scientifically proven that music can affect perception in other senses and change the way wine tastes."
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Heriot-Watt University
The effect was more pronounced with red wine than white and Prof North thinks this could be because people might be less certain about judging red wine, as they were less sure how to describe its complex flavours.
Prof North told the BBC: "It is widely acknowledged within the scientific community that music affects behaviour. However, this is the first time it has been scientifically proven that music can affect perception in other senses and change the way wine tastes."
LINKS
Heriot-Watt University
