The Grapevine

Wine Industry News – Are Low-Alcohol Wines Really Better?

May 4th, 2015

I’m also not usually a fan of the whole anti- high-alcohol wines rant; wines can be good or bad regardless of their alcohol content. Turns out I may be wrong, though. From the Yale Daily News we learn this:  [level-members]

Researchers at the Basque Center on Cognition, Brain and Language and Yale have discovered that people’s brains are activated significantly more when they taste low-alcohol content wines than when they taste high-alcohol content ones — in fMRI studies conducted by the researchers, the brain regions that are sensitive to taste intensity lit up more. The findings suggest that higher alcohol content overshadows the taste and aroma of wine whereas lower proof wines offer drinkers a more pleasant sensory experience. The study was published online in the journal PLOS One on March 18.

The study seems pretty scientifically rigorous, though there are those who question methodology and accuracy. Read more here.

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