Label health statements what TTB's new regulations really mean

Wines & Vines, Oct, 2003 by Elisabeth Holmgren

References:

For more information review ttb.gov/press/ttb/fy03press/022803healthclaims.htm and visit health.gov/dietaryguidelines.

RELATED ARTICLE: Use Brain For Better Tasting

Trained wine tasters use more of their brains when tasting than do novices, according to a recent study performed at a Rome hospital.

"What we found is that the training does not just educate your palate, it also affects how your brain responds to the taste of wine," Swedish bio-physicist Gisela Hagberg told a gathering at Rome's Wine Academy in June.

Seven sommeliers and seven casual drinkers underwent brain scans while sampling wine. Scans of both groups revealed strong activity in the amygdala, a part of the brain that reacts to pleasure. The sommeliers, however, also showed activity in parts of their frontal cortexes, a brain area used for thinking. The amateurs had no reaction there.

"This proves the reasoning, the intellectual effort that goes into breaking down the many tastes of a wine and assessing its full flavor," study subject and sommelier Andrea Sturniolo told Reuters. "It's not that sommeliers are superior beings, of course. It's all in the training and the experience."

(Elisabeth Holmgren is director of U.S. operations for UK-based Alcohol in Moderation (AIM). She may be reached at edit@winesandvines.com.)