Recommended reading for my upcoming wine class

Recommended reading for my Improving Your Wine Palate / Wine 'Taste Buds' class:


In the Slate article, 'Do You Taste What Taste? The Physiology of the Wine Critic,' Mike Steinberger talks about the science behind how we smell. Steinberger shares that, "the vast majority of flavors that we perceive when eating and drinking are actually aromas, filtered up to our noses through a tube called the retronasal passage," and that science has shown that, "memory, experience, and expectations play an enormous part in how individuals react to aromas and flavors."

Steinberger spoke with Dr. Charles Wysocki of the Monell Chemical Senses Center in Philadelphia. Wysocki shared that everyone has their own individual aromatic 'blind spots,' which can explain why one person smells different aromas in wines than the drinker sitting beside him or her.Working around these genetic 'blind spots,' the February 6th class will help you increase your memory and experience of common wine aromas.

I hope you can attend!

Gary Vaynerchuk of WineLibrary.com tapes a wine tasting show every weekday. His episode on Sauvignon Blanc is full of wine tasting notes. Watch the video here and make a list of all the different smells Gary can find on just one type of wine.
http://tv.winelibrary.com/2008/01/21/new-zealand-sauvignon-blanc-marathon-episode-390/

On possible example of an aromatic blind spot at work occured on Episode 388 of Gary Vaynerchuk's show. He and a guest, Joanne, were tasting wines and Joanne, who is from the UK, smelled an aroma that Gary did not pick up. It could have been an aromatic blind spot for Vaynerchuk or an example of what I call the 'nurture factor,' - the fact that everyone has been exposed to different smells and tastes based on the foods and aromas we encountered growing up and in our daily lives.

For example, a farmer would be able to pick up a 'barnyard' smell much faster than her friend that grew up in an urban environment.

This FREE class is Wednesday, February 6 at 7 p.m. at the Honest Weight Food Coop in Albany. Please stop by the coop to reserve your seat!


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