Imagine that you’ve been dragged to a dinner party you really do not want to attend. Would you rather take an ice bath on a frigid winter morning than attend this party? Yes. Would you rather lose your significant other, who wants you to be there? Sadly … no.
You walk in the door. Avoiding the inquisitive gazes of the guests, you embark on a search for the one thing that will get you through the night—wine. Luckily, the host Rick brings you a glass of something red. Rick, totally unprompted, starts talking about his job as an investment banker.
“You know, on a per hour basis I actually don’t make that much money,” Rick exclaims. Now, in the past, this is the moment you would have smiled and nodded as you took a triple sip, hoping to numb the pain. But not this time. This time, you hold the glass in front of you and observe the wine’s color while Rick’s words fly right over your head.
Step 1: See
In a legendary study conducted by Frédérick Brochet at the University of Bordeaux, 54 wine science students were asked to describe a red wine. Little did they know that they were actually drinking white wine that had been disguised with food coloring. What do you think happened? They all described the dyed white wine as a red! Clearly, our perceptions of color massively influence our interpretation of taste.
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