According to new research done by neuroscientist Dr. Gordon Shepherd, which was shared by The Independent, not only is wine delicious, but it’s a fantastic workout for the brain.
The Yale School of Medicine professor said that sniffing wine and analyzing the taste with our tongue takes some “exquisite control of one of the biggest muscles in the body.” How? According to the years he spent studying the ways in which our brains process flavors, he found that when we swirl wine around our mouth, the muscles of our tongue, as well as thousands of taste and odor receptors, are kicked into high gear. This analysis of the aromatic flavors is said to stimulate the brain in ways even solving tough math problems can’t seem to do.
In his new book, Neuroenology: How The Brain Creates The Taste of Wine, Shepherd stated that through his studies, he came to the conclusion that the taste of wine has nothing to do with the specific drink in question, but rather, the taste “is created by the brain of the wine taster.”
Those tastes are based on our own references of flavor, which come from “our own memories and emotions and those of our companions,” as well as the composition of our saliva, our ages and gender.
Swallowing the wine is said to be paramount to the tasting process (not spitting it out as some do at tastings), which gives your brain that workout. However, if you drink too much, you’re giving your brain a bad workout — so don’t say we gave you an excuse to get your guzzle on, friends.
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