So I'm a Master Sommelier. I studied 9 years to pass the exam in 2014. Since then I've run wineries, worked in the vineyards, owed restaurants and retail wine shops and teach about wine around the world. I've worked/studied/observed wine from every angle and it's fair to say I probably know more about the subject than 99.236% of the entire population. That said, when I'm teaching my main goal is to try and instill humility into my students because first and foremost we are in the service industry and wine much like high-end audio can quickly devolve into douchebaggery.
Why Are We Breaking Our Brains?
A master sommelier takes a sip of red wine, swishes it around a bit, pauses, ponders, and then announces: “…. It’s from a mountainous region … probably Argentina … Catena Zapata Argentina Malbec 2020.” Another sommelier at a fine eating establishment in a major city is asked: “What would you pair with shrimp?” The sommelier hesitates for a moment then asks the diners: “What shrimp dish are you ordering?” The sommelier knows the pairing depends on whether the shrimp is briny, crisp, sweet, or meaty. Or some other “house specialty” not mentioned here. The sommelier can probably give good examples of $10 wines and bad examples of $100 wines. And why a good $100 wine is worth … one hundred dollars.
Sommeliers do not have a master’s degree in biochemistry. And no one from the scientific world is attempting to humiliate them in public forums for “claiming to know more than a little bit about wines” with no scientific basis to back them up. No one is shouting “confirmation bias” when the “somm” claims that high end wines are better than cheap wines, and well worth the money.
Yet, guys and gals with decades of involvement in high performance audio who claim to “hear differences” in various elements introduced into audio chain are pulled thru a gauntlet of scientific scrutiny, often with a great deal of fanfare and personal invalidation. Why is there not a process for “musical discovery” for seasoned audiophiles, and a certification process? Evaluator: “Okay, I’m going to change something in the system. Tell me what you hear. The options are interconnect upgrade, anti-skate calibration, removal of acoustical materials, or change in bitrate. Choose one.”
How can those with pretty “sensitive antennas” and years of hands (and, ears) on good gear convince the technical world that they are actually qualified to hear what they are hearing?
Why is it viewed as an inferior process for seasoned professionals to just listen, "swish" it around in their brains for a bit, and comment?
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I was at another, informal wine tasting last night and along with the usual tasting, the owner did three blind tastes with the crowd. After pouring, he asks if it's new or old world, going from person to person. Then he asks what country, province or state it came from followed by what the varietal is. It's all done aloud and rather fun to do. Doing it that way, I see no angle where confirmation bias resides as it's a blind tasting. One can will it to be something but it won't make it so. Case in point: on the second round I got it right with it being new world. I also got it right with it being from California. Where I messed up with is I changed my mind as to the type of grape. When I first smelled and tasted it, my inner self said clearly, this is a Cab. But the more I discussed it as the pours continued, the more I started to doubt it and came up with some lame rationalizations as to why. I even said it was a Cab and then asked if it was okay to change my mind, which the owner allowed (with a look I'll never forget) and said it was a Merlot. The point is, confirmation bias ain't gonna make it so. That, and although a nice analogy at first blush, wine tasting involves two senses with smell being the strongest of any of our senses when it comes to invoking memories, and you can't really taste all that well without a great sense of smell. Our hearing only involves one sense, which is further down the ladder when it comes to invoking and recalling memories as it was initially meant to keep us safe and tells us where to look. We've only learned at a later stage of our development to enjoy sounds and relate to what pleases us. First and foremost, it's the type of music that draws us in and not its accurate reproduction. That comes later. Take any properly sorted out system and music we don't like will not appeal to us. It would be very difficult to determine if a system was better sounding listening to music we don't like or are unfamiliar with. It has to be music we enjoy and then refining the system can start. You can rationalize away guessing the correct wine, despite knowing deep down what it is, but I can't see someone doing the same when it comes to listening to something and choosing the wrong, inferior sounding set up. A different set of variables are involved. We don't listen the same way we taste. All the best,
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When I got back into red wine a few years ago ( a real passion since college) I read several books on sommelier and what it takes… etc. Then I bought an
https://aromaster.com/product/master-wine-aroma-kit/
Kit. With 88 auroras. From lemon grass, to horse sweat (yes, it comes up). To train my nose. It is amazing how you can go from oblivious to relatively sensitive… in. Months or years of training. |
- 108 posts total